Former New York Mets Fan Favorite DFA'd By Oakland Athletics

A former New York Mets fan favorite was just DFA'd by his new team, could a reunion be in store?

May 23, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics first baseman J.D. Davis (5) hits a two-run home run against the Colorado Rockies during the eighth inning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Mets traded away a fan favorite player a few years ago, but a reunion could make sense after his new team decided to put him back on the market.

J.D. Davis has had a rocky career that has never seen him able to reach the heights he once did with New York. On Monday, the Oakland Athletics DFA'd him.

Davis was also at a career-low when the Mets decided to take a chance on him the first time.

The Houston Astros selected the California native in the third round of the 2014 MLB draft. He spent four years in the minor leagues where he looked promising.

Once he made his debut in 2017, it was clear that he wasn't ready. They gave him another shot in 2018, but he was even worse. In 66 games across those two campaigns, he slashed just .194/.260/.321 at the plate. It was time for a fresh start elsewhere.

In January 2019, Houston traded Davis and Cody Bohanek to New York in exchange for Ross Adolph, Luis Santana and Scott Manea. Davis is the only player in that group to have any appearances in MLB since that trade, so it's fair to say that the Mets won that deal.

The corner infielder made an immediate impact in New York, slashing .307/.369/.527 while hitting 22 home runs in what would be his first full season in the majors.

His 2020 was a bit worse than his 2019, but he found a groove again in 2021. He never captured the same power output as he did in that first year, but he was still a solid bat. His OPS didn't settle below .761 across those three campaigns.

The struggles got a bit worse in 2022, though. In the first 66 games, he was slashing just .238/.324/.359 and the Mets decided that it was time to part ways.

New York traded away Davis and a haul of pitching prospects (Carson Seymour, Nick Zwack and Thomas Szapucki) to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for infielder Darin Ruf.

Those three pitching prospect are still in the San Francisco farm system. Ruf only appeared in 28 games for the Mets before being DFA'd and eventually released. He's currently a free agent.

Davis' time with San Francisco ended contentiously. After winning an arbitration case that got his 2024 salary up to $6.9 million, he was released during spring training and lost out on a few million in non-guaranteed money.

He signed a contract with Oakland a couple of weeks before the start of the season. His time there has been nothing short of disappointing, slashing just .236/.304/.366 and spending a couple of weeks on IL.

A reunion between Davis and New York could make sense for both sides. The Mets are in need of another bench bat, especially with their recent win streak putting them back in playoff contention.