Mark William Davis (born October 19, 1960) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

. Davis played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB) for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

(1980–1981, 1993),

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yo ...

(1983–1987),

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

(1987–1989, 1993–1994),

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

(1990–1992),

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...

(1992), and

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

(1997). He won the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Ha ...

in , as a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

for the Padres. Davis batted and threw left-handed. He was the Minor League Pitching Coordinator for the Kansas City Royals organization, but stepped aside after the season to

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

a single short-season affiliate in .

Playing career

Davis began his career in with the Philadelphia Phillies, and spent parts of five seasons with the San Francisco Giants. He started a career-high 27 games in for a 5–17

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

. He became a primary reliever the following season, but he did not establish himself as a top reliever until being traded to San Diego during the midseason. In , Davis became the Padres' closer, earning 28 saves and 44 in , appearing in the

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or d ...

in both seasons. He was a

winner in 1989 after a 1.85 ERA and 65

games finished In baseball statistics, a relief pitcher is credited with a game finished (denoted by GF) if he is the last pitcher to pitch for his team in a game. A starting pitcher is not credited with a GF for pitching a complete game. Mariano Rivera is th ...

in addition to his league-leading save total. In the last month of the season, he pitched 25 innings and did not allow any of the 19 runners he inherited to score. He was the fourth closer so honored in Award history. No closer would win the NL Cy Young again until Éric Gagné in . Davis signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who i ...

for US$10 million with the Kansas City Royals before the season. He pitched ineffectively early in the season and subsequently lost the closer role to Jeff Montgomery. After a brief stint for the Atlanta Braves in , again he pitched with the Phillies and Padres from –. After going out for two years, he returned to pitch until retiring with the Milwaukee Brewers in . He never came close to matching his accomplishments for San Diego, earning only eleven saves over the last eight seasons of his career. In a 15-season MLB career, Davis posted a 51–84 record, with a 4.17 ERA, and 96 saves, in 624

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher; a player who is announced as the pitcher must face at least one batter, although excep ...

Post-playing career

Davis spent three seasons on the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

staff, as bullpen coach in –, and pitching coach in . From to , Davis was the pitching coach for the Arizona League Royals. That October, he was promoted by the

to Minor League Pitching Coordinator.

Personal life

Davis currently lives in

Scottsdale, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Winfield Scott , image_skyline = , image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg , image_blank_emblem = City of Scottsdale Script Logo.svg , nic ...

, with Candy, his wife. They have four children (two sons and two daughters).

References

External links

Mark Davis
at Baseball Almanac
Mark Davis
at Baseball Gauge {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Mark 1960 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Arizona Diamondbacks coaches Atlanta Braves players Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from California Brevard County Manatees players Chabot Gladiators baseball players Charlotte Knights players Cy Young Award winners High Desert Mavericks players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Mexican League baseball pitchers Milwaukee Brewers players National League All-Stars National League saves champions Oklahoma City 89ers players Omaha Royals players People from Livermore, California Philadelphia Phillies players Phoenix Giants players Reading Phillies players Rojos del Águila de Veracruz players San Diego Padres players San Francisco Giants players Spartanburg Phillies players Tucson Toros players

Playing career

Post-playing career

Personal life

See also

References

External links