TORONTO -- Matt Davidson continued his hot start to the 2018 season on Wednesday in Toronto with his fourth home run in five games, setting the tone for a 4-3 White Sox victory.
Davidson connected on a 94.2 mph fastball from Aaron Sanchez in the second inning and sent it 362 feet over the wall in left field to give the White Sox a 1-0 lead. Statcast™ projected Davidson's exit velocity at 99.6 mph, and the low liner stayed up long enough to hook around the pole at Rogers Centre.
After posting a .220 batting average and .260 on-base percentage last season, manager Rick Renteria now sees the potential for Davidson to become a more complete offensive player outside of the power.
"Most guys are hitters first and then power comes," Renteria said. "Historically, or the old-school thinking, we used to think that way. He's got the natural ability, if he puts the bat on the ball in the right spot, then he's able to put it out of the ball park."
This was Davidson's first home run since Opening Day, when he grabbed the spotlight with three home runs and five RBIs in a 14-7 win over the Royals. That big day included blasts off Blaine Boyer, Brian Flynn and Danny Duffy. Davidson's fourth home run tied him for the Major League lead.
"I think he will continue to adapt, learn, and adjust," Renteria said. "Hopefully, everything will kind of come together and you'll see complete at-bats."
Davidson is coming off a 2017 season in which he hit 26 home runs over 118 games. He received the start at first base on Wednesday after being used as a DH in Chicago's first four games.