Douglas Raymond Davis (born September 24, 1962) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player and coach. Davis is currently the

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

of the

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home ...

, the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. During his playing career, he appeared in seven games over two seasons as a

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

and

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

for the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

and Texas Rangers of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB).

Playing career

Davis attended

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

, where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the Wolfpack from 1982 to 1984. He was drafted by the

in the ninth round of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. He made his professional debut that same year with the Single-A

Peoria Chiefs The Peoria Chiefs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team was established in 1983 as the Peoria Suns. They are located in Peoria, Illinois, and are named for the Pe ...

. He spent the 1985 season with the Double-A Midland Angels where he batted .258 with six

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

and 29 RBIs in 79 games. He spent the next two seasons with Midland before being promoted to the Triple-A Edmonton Trappers ahead of the 1988 season. In 79 games with Edmonton, Davis slashed .257/.335/.310 with one home run. On July 8, 1988, Davis made his Major League debut for the California Angels. He arrived at

Cleveland Municipal Stadium Cleveland Stadium, commonly known as Municipal Stadium, Lakefront Stadium or Cleveland Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and foot ...

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, just an hour before the start of the game. Not originally in the lineup, Davis entered the game as a

pinch runner In baseball or softball, a pinch runner is a player substituted into a game for the purpose of base running. Description A pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been s ...

for

Jack Howell who was

hit by a pitch In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provide ...

in the top of fourth inning. Davis remained in Howell’s spot, assuming his duties at third base despite not playing third in the minors. His unorthodox debut was capped off by a benches clearing brawl after Indians’ pitcher

Bud Black Harry Ralston "Bud" Black (born June 30, 1957) is an American professional baseball manager and pitcher who most recently served as manager of the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB from 1981 through 1995, most not ...

hit Devon White with a pitch. Davis appeared in six games for the Angels in 1988, going hitless in 12

at-bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

. Davis returned to the minor leagues where he spent the next three seasons in the Angels and

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) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

minor league organizations. In 1992, Davis split his season between the Double-A

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

and the Triple-A Oklahoma City 89ers in the Texas Rangers organization. In April 23, 1992, Davis appeared in his first and only game for the Rangers as a defensive replacement in the top of the ninth inning for catcher Ivan Rodriguez. In the bottom of the ninth, Davis recorded his first career hit, a single off pitcher John Doherty. Davis spent the 1993, 1994 and 1995 seasons in the minor leagues.

Coaching and managing career

In 1996, Davis was named the

of the Pittsfield Mets of the

New York-Penn League New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. In just his second season as manager, Davis led Pittsfield to a 42–32 record and the league championship. By 1999, he had been promoted to manage the Double-A Binghamton Mets. Davis was the

bench coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decision ...

of the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

in 2003 and 2004. He spent the 2007 and 2008 seasons as manager of the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

' Triple-A affiliate, the

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

. He was the Blue Jays' Minor League Field Coordinator until 2016. He was the defensive coach for the New York Yankees AAA affiliate Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders until 2020. On January 27, 2020, he was named Manager of the Railriders. Prior to the 2023 season, Davis was named the Manager of the Texas Rangers Triple-A affiliate

. In his first season with the team, Davis led the Express to an 89–60 record and a

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

championship birth. The team lost the championship series to the

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Comets are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their ho ...

References

External links

1962 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball coaches from Pennsylvania Baseball players from Columbia County, Pennsylvania Binghamton Mets managers California Angels players Edmonton Trappers players Florida Marlins coaches Lake Elsinore Storm players Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball infielders Memphis Chicks players Midland Angels players Minor league baseball coaches NC State Wolfpack baseball players Oklahoma City 89ers players Palm Springs Angels players People from Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania Peoria Chiefs players Syracuse Chiefs managers Texas Rangers players Tulsa Drillers players 20th-century American sportsmen Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders managers {{US-baseball-third-baseman-stub