BIOGRAPHY
Wade Davis was born September 7, 1985, in Lake Wales, Florida. He is a pitcher in the MLB.
The Tampa Bay Devil Rays selected Davis in the third round, with the 75th overall selection, of the 2004 MLB draft. In the minors, he sported a 93–94 mph fastball, and a spike curveball.
Davis made his major league debut on September 6, 2009, against the Detroit Tigers. He earned a no-decision after pitching seven innings, allowing one run, with nine strikeouts.
He was named a starting pitcher on Baseball America's 2010 All-Rookie Team. The Tampa Bay chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America also named Davis the Most Outstanding Rookie of the Tampa Bay Rays for the 2010 season. He came in 4th in the voting for 2010 AL Rookie of the Year.
In 2014, Davis posted one of the most dominant seasons ever by a reliever. From June 25 to September 16, Davis did not give up an earned run. On September 15, his ERA was an astonishing 0.69. On September 22, 2014, Davis struck out Yan Gomes for his 104th strikeout of the season, breaking the Royals record for most strikeouts by a relief pitcher, which was 103 and had been shared by Jim York (1971) and Greg Holland (2013). Davis finished the regular season with a 9-2 record, posting a 1.00 ERA. He struck out 109 batters and walked 23. He did not give up a home run in 2014. This dominance continued through the postseason, with Davis posting a 2-0 record and an ERA of 0.63. He struck out 20 batters and walked only 2.
In 2015, Davis continued his dominance in the bullpen, pitching almost exclusively in the 8th inning, much like 2014. On June 28, Davis' homerless streak almost ended, giving up a double off the top of the wall at O.co Coliseum to Marcus Semien. On August 1, Davis' homerless streak ended at 125.2 innings, giving up a home run to the Blue Jays' José Bautista. His streak was the second longest in Royals history, and the longest such streak by a reliever. On September 22, Davis was selected by manager Ned Yost as the Royals' new closer, as the Royals announced that Greg Holland was done for the year and possibly all of 2016 due to pending Tommy John surgery. On October 23, Davis forced Blue Jays slugger and 2015 American League MVP candidate Josh Donaldson to ground out to Mike Moustakas at third base, which was the final out to secure the Royals' second consecutive American League Championship Series title. Davis later recorded the final three outs of the 2015 World Series, as the Royals defeated the New York Mets in five games.In the 2015 MLB postseason, Davis went 1-0 and earned four saves in four opportunities. He struck out 18 batters while allowing no earned runs over 10+2⁄3 innings pitched. This performance earned him the 2015 Babe Ruth Award, recognizing Davis as the most valuable player in the MLB postseason.
