Houston Astros Should Reunite With Recently DFA'd Former Draft Pick
The Houston Astros traded away a former draft pick a few years ago, but a reunion could be in store now that he was just DFA'd by the Oakland Athletics.
J.D. Davis was a coveted player out of high school. So much so, that the Tampa Bay Rays selected him in the fifth round of 2011 MLB draft. Davis decided to skip out on that opportunity to go to school at Cal State Fullerton.
That gave Houston the chance to pick him in the third round of the 2014 draft, which is when his professional career officially began.
The California native shined across his four years in the Houston farm system. He consistently hit 20-plus home runs while maintaining a solid batting average.
The Astros gave Davis his MLB debut in 2017, but he struggled in those 24 games. He actually played better-than-ever in Triple A the next season, but reached a new low when called back up to the majors.
Across 66 games with Houston, he slashed just .194/.260/.321. The front office decided it was time for him to find a fresh start and shipped him off to the New York Mets during the 2019 offseason.
The Astros sent Davis and Cody Bohanek to New York in exchange for Ross Adolph, Luis Santana and Scott Manea. None of the players that Houston received ever made the MLB roster and are all out of the farm system.
As luck would have it, Davis immediately clicked once he started playing for the Mets. In his first full season in the majors, he looked like the player that the Astros saw in Triple A. He slashed .307/.369/.527 while hitting 22 home runs in 2019.
The corner infielder never got back to that same level of performance with New York, or anyone else for that matter, but he remained a solid bat.
The Mets eventually traded him to the San Francisco Giants, where he spent a year and a half before meeting a contentious end to his time there.
The now 31-year-old was cut in Spring Training after winning a salary arbitration case, costing him a few million dollars and forcing him into a short deal with Oakland.
His 2024 campaign has been one to forget to this point. He has slashed just .236/.304/.366 at the plate and spent a few weeks on the IL.
A reunion between Houston and Davis still makes sense despite the current struggles, at least for a flier.
First base has no real solution right now, especially after the release of Jose Abreu. While a number of players could potentially supplement the position that are already on the roster, giving Davis another chance while being natural to the position is worth a shot. He could, at worst, compete with Jon Singleton for playing time.
DYLAN SANDERS
Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders