Washington Nationals Non-Roster Player Profile: Erik Davis
By Ricky Keeler
Today, we take a look at one of the Nats’ relievers who was invited to Viera as a non-roster invitee:
Today, we continue our look at the non-roster invitees that the Washington Nationals invited to spring training this year by looking at one of their relievers, Erik Davis. Davis was designated for assignment earlier this offseason, but then was sent to triple-A Syracuse along with Taylor Hill when Daniel Murphy and Stephen Drew officially signed their deals.
Last season, Davis played in 37 games with three different affiliates in the minor league system (low-A Potomac, double-A Harrisburg, Triple-A Syracuse). The 29-year-old right-hander went 1-2 with a 3.88 ERA in those games, but the issue for him was his control (five walks per nine innings).
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Davis began his 2015 season in Potomac on May 8 after missing the entire 2014 season because of Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. After two games at Potomac, Davis would go back-and-forth between Harrisburg and Syracuse throughout the season.
The right-hander struggled while at triple-A where he had a 8.49 ERA in 11 games. He would be assigned to Harrisburg at June 23. After a bad month of July (4.31 ERA), Davis ended up finishing his season on a good note.
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Over his final 15 appearances of the season, Davis went 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and had two saves in three chances. He had 22 strikeouts, 11 walks, and an opponents’ batting average of .197. In fact, all three runs that he gave up in the second half of the year occurred in one game (August 24 against Richmond).
The Nationals did promote Davis to the 40-man roster in September last season, but he did not appear in a Major League game. That being said, Davis does have major league experience as he appeared in 10 games with the Nats back in 2013 (1-0, 3.12 ERA in 8.2 innings).
Davis has been with the Nationals’ organization since 2011. Before the 2011 season began, Davis was dealt from the Padres to the Nats in exchange for second baseman Alberto Gonzalez. San Diego was the team where Davis began his professional career after the Padres selected him in the 13th round of the 2008 MLB Draft.
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Even though the Nationals have added many new pieces to their bullpen, Davis could be one of those guys that could get a call-up if somebody goes down. The Nats hope that Davis is able to build off the momentum he had at the end of last season and that the second year pitching after the surgery brings better results for the right-hander.