New York Mets sign outfielder Rajai Davis
The New York Mets have agreed to terms with speedy outfielder Raja Davis, who will be joining the team on a minor-league pact with an invite to spring training.
According to an official team announcement, the New York Mets have agreed to terms with outfielder Rajai Davis, signing him to a minor-league deal with an invite to major-league spring training.
Davis, 38, has been around the league for a while, having spent parts of 13 seasons with the Pirates, Giants, Athletics, Blue Jays, Tigers, Red Sox, and Indians. A spectacular base stealer, his 415 career swipes are good enough for third among active players.
In 2018, the native of Norwich, Connecticut played for the Cleveland Indians, appearing in 101 games for them and slashing .224/.278/.281 in 196 at-bats. Despite his age, he still managed to steal 21 bases, which is undoubtedly attractive for a Mets team that, at the end of the day, doesn’t have that much depth in the outfield.
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Though relatively quiet in his speed, Davis is one of the game’s best in this department, currently sitting at 66th in the history of baseball for career stolen bases, just one behind Charlie Comiskey and four behind Jimmy Ryan and Frankie Frisch.
Offensively, he is a career .262 hitter, boasting a decent career OPS of .690. Having appeared in over 1400 major league games, he is clearly being brought in primarily for his ability to wreck havoc on the basepaths.
As many have already noted, Davis is being signed as a depth outfielder, so it likely won’t do much if, for some reason, he doesn’t make the team out of spring training. Despite this, though, it’s hard to imagine he’ll have a lot of competition on a rather thin Mets team.
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Still, the New York Mets, continuously aggressive in their pursuit of position players, aren’t done here. More to come.