Rangers manager Chris Woodward said the first thing Khris Davis said in his first hitter’s meeting of the regular season was: “I’m gonna get this team to the playoffs”
“That's the reason why we play this game, is to win,” Davis said. “And if I could just help this organization get to the playoffs, that's my main goal. I told Woody that's my focus. Not to play every day. Just be a good teammate and help the other guys succeed, too. This is a hard game, and whatever I can do to help my teammates, that's the most important thing to me right now.”
Davis, the main return in Rangers’ signature offseason trade with Oakland, was activated from the injured list on May 8 and has already begun to make an impact on and off the field.
In his first appearances with the Rangers, he had a pinch-hit RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning of a comeback win over Seattle. He also had a 2-for-4 night at San Francisco on Monday, including a triple and a run scored. He added a diving play in the outfield on the Rangers’ first defensive play of the game.
Davis, 33, said he feels 100 percent following the quad injury that kept him off the active roster to start the season. He said he feels even better than he did at the start of last season with Oakland, and he’s excited to be part of a new organization and get a new start.
Catcher Jose Trevino joked that it’s nice to have Davis on his team now after watching him dominate against Texas for years. Davis has 32 career home runs against the Rangers.
“I can't wait for him to start hitting homers to right field again,” Trevino said. “I mean, that's all I remember from him going against us, like endless homers to right, and I'm like, 'man, this dude got us again.'”
And while Davis has shown himself to be an asset on the field, he’s been even more within a clubhouse full of young guys.
“It feels pretty exciting just to see their eyes kind of light up when I walk by,” Davis said. “They get quiet, but I'm pretty approachable with them. I don't even know the right word to explain it, but it's very youthful. Their eyes are open, and they suck up all the information, and they like talking baseball all day.”
Outfielder David Dahl, who is one of the more veteran guys on this Rangers squad, said Davis’ presence in the clubhouse helps everyone.
“He's very laid-back, very chill, like he's a really chill dude,” Dahl said. “He likes to have fun, likes to joke around and keep it light. So I think that definitely helps, especially with younger guys. Everyone's trying to establish ourselves, but it’s good to just kind of take a step back and relax.”
“Calm” was a word that multiple players used to describe Davis’ presence. Woodward said he has a way of making people feel comfortable in the clubhouse, while also feeding into the competition and making it a healthy and competitive environment.
Woodward affirmed that he brings a little bit of edge as well. Davis is a player whom teammates rally around, and he brings an energy that can feed the clubhouse.
“He's definitely a leader to me,” Trevino added. “He’s someone that's gonna have your back no matter what. KD knows who he is. He knows what he needs to do, he knows what he's trying to do. He's dropped some powerful stuff on us already. He's just an overall good dude. I mean, if he doesn’t think he's a leader, we're treating him as a leader. He's doing a great job right now, especially bringing us all together, so it's good. It’s special.”