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  • Chili Davis

    Birth Date: 01/17/1960

    Chili Davis Autograph

    Chili Davis's Autograph

    Chili Davis Bio

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    Charles (Chili) Davis had a long and illustrious career in Major League Baseball; drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 11th round of the 1977 MLB Draft, he debuted in 1981 and played with the Giants through the 1987 season. He moved to Anaheim and played with the California Angels for two years before landing at the part we care about, the 1991 Minnesota Twins.

    Davis, coming off a solid 1990 season with California (114 OPS+), signed a two-year, $4.5 million deal with Minnesota in January of 1991. The Twins, coming off a last-place finish in 1990 but maintaining some pieces from the core of the championship-winning 1987 squad along with some promising farmhands, signed Davis (along with Jack Morris) in an attempt to return to relevancy.

    Davis did all the Twins asked of him and more, posting a 141 OPS+ with 29 home runs in the 1991 season. He switch-hit in the middle of the resurgent Twins lineup, leading the team in several categories on his way to a 3.3 rWAR as the primary designated hitter.

    In the postseason, Davis was just as crucial to the Twins success as he had been during the regular season. In the ALCS, he went 5-for-17 with two doubles against the Toronto Blue Jays and then 4-for-18 with two home runs against the Atlanta Braves in the World Series. In game two of the World Series, his two-run home run pushed the Twins to a narrow 3-2 victory over the Braves.

    Davis stayed with the Twins in 1992 and continued his productive ways, posting a 130 OPS+ over 529 plate appearances. Many of the balls he saw fly over the fence in 1991 became outs or doubles in 1992, as his home run count dropped from 29 in 1991 to just 12 in 1992. He recovered value by raising his batting average by roughly 20 points and raising his on-base percentage to a near-elite .386 that season.

    1993 saw Davis return to the California Angels where he struggled for one year. Move the calendar to 1994 and Davis resumed smashing the ball, posting a 148 OPS+ in 1994 and a 146 OPS+ in 1995. Davis continued his career with the Angels, made a brief stop in Kansas City with the Royals, and landed in New York as a roleplayer for the re-emerging Yankees teams of the late-90s.

    Chili Davis retired after the 1999 season.

    Notable Events & Trivia

    • Chili Davis is one of only five Jamaican-born players to play in MLB

    Chili Davis Statistics

    Standard Batting
    Year Age Tm Lg G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
    1981 21 SFG NL 8 16 15 1 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 2 .133 .188 .133 .321 -7 2 1 0 0 0 0 /H987  
    1982 22 SFG NL 154 701 641 86 167 27 6 19 76 24 13 45 115 .261 .308 .410 .719 101 263 13 2 7 6 2 *87/H9 RoY-4
    1983 23 SFG NL 137 554 486 54 113 21 2 11 59 10 12 55 108 .233 .305 .352 .657 85 171 9 0 3 9 6 *89/H  
    1984 24 SFG NL 137 546 499 87 157 21 6 21 81 12 8 42 74 .315 .368 .507 .875 148 253 13 1 2 2 6 *89H/7 AS
    1985 25 SFG NL 136 551 481 53 130 25 2 13 56 15 7 62 74 .270 .349 .412 .761 117 198 16 0 1 7 12 *98H  
    1986 26 SFG NL 153 618 526 71 146 28 3 13 70 16 13 84 96 .278 .375 .416 .791 124 219 11 1 2 5 23 *98/H AS
    1987 27 SFG NL 149 578 500 80 125 22 1 24 76 16 9 72 109 .250 .344 .442 .786 111 221 8 2 0 4 15 *89H7  
    1988 28 CAL AL 158 667 600 81 161 29 3 21 93 9 10 56 118 .268 .326 .432 .757 114 259 13 0 1 10 14 *9/8DH  
    1989 29 CAL AL 154 630 560 81 152 24 1 22 90 3 0 61 109 .271 .340 .436 .775 120 244 21 0 3 6 12 *7/DH MVP-25
    1990 30 CAL AL 113 476 412 58 109 17 1 12 58 1 2 61 89 .265 .357 .398 .755 114 164 14 0 0 3 4 D7/9H  
    1991 31 MIN AL 153 634 534 84 148 34 1 29 93 5 6 95 117 .277 .385 .507 .892 141 271 9 1 0 4 13 *D/H7 MVP-14
    1992 32 MIN AL 138 529 444 63 128 27 2 12 66 4 5 73 76 .288 .386 .439 .825 130 195 11 3 0 9 11 *DH/937  
    1993 33 CAL AL 152 645 573 74 139 32 0 27 112 4 1 71 135 .243 .327 .440 .767 103 252 18 1 0 0 12 *D/H1  
    1994 34 CAL AL 108 468 392 72 122 18 1 26 84 3 2 69 84 .311 .410 .561 .971 148 220 12 1 0 6 11 *D/7 AS,MVP-22
    1995 35 CAL AL 119 522 424 81 135 23 0 20 86 3 3 89 79 .318 .429 .514 .943 146 218 12 0 0 9 12 *D  
    1996 36 CAL AL 145 623 530 73 155 24 0 28 95 5 2 86 99 .292 .387 .496 .884 124 263 18 0 1 6 11 *D/H  
    1997 37 KCR AL 140 567 477 71 133 20 0 30 90 6 3 85 96 .279 .386 .509 .896 131 243 15 1 0 4 16 *D/H  
    1998 38 NYY AL 35 118 103 11 30 7 0 3 9 0 1 14 18 .291 .373 .447 .819 116 46 6 0 0 1 1 D/H  
    1999 39 NYY AL 146 554 476 59 128 25 1 19 78 4 1 73 100 .269 .366 .445 .812 108 212 12 2 0 3 7 *DH  
    19 Yrs 2435 9997 8673 1240 2380 424 30 350 1372 142 98 1194 1698 .274 .360 .451 .811 121 3914 232 15 20 94 188    
    162 Game Avg. 162 665 577 82 158 28 2 23 91 9 7 79 113 .274 .360 .451 .811 121 260 15 1 1 6 13    
      G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
    CAL (7 yrs) 949 4031 3491 520 973 167 6 156 618 28 20 493 713 .279 .365 .464 .829 123 1620 108 2 5 40 76    
    SFG (7 yrs) 874 3564 3148 432 840 144 20 101 418 95 62 361 578 .267 .340 .422 .762 113 1327 71 6 15 33 64    
    MIN (2 yrs) 291 1163 978 147 276 61 3 41 159 9 11 168 193 .282 .385 .476 .862 136 466 20 4 0 13 24    
    NYY (2 yrs) 181 672 579 70 158 32 1 22 87 4 2 87 118 .273 .368 .446 .813 110 258 18 2 0 4 8    
    KCR (1 yr) 140 567 477 71 133 20 0 30 90 6 3 85 96 .279 .386 .509 .896 131 243 15 1 0 4 16    
                                                         
    AL (12 yrs) 1561 6433 5525 808 1540 280 10 249 954 47 36 833 1120 .279 .371 .468 .839 125 2587 161 9 5 61 124    
    NL (7 yrs) 874 3564 3148 432 840 144 20 101 418 95 62 361 578 .267 .340 .422 .762 113 1327 71 6 15 33 64    
    Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
    Generated 6/2/2024.

    See all » Chili Davis Articles

    How Did the Twins Fare After the Rabbit Ball Season?

    Baseballs were flying out of ballparks at a record pace during the 2020 season and the Twins took full advantage by clocking 307 home runs and setting the all-time MLB record. Another important season in Twins history saw a record-breaking home run pace that many attribute to a different baseball being used. What happened back in 1987 and how did the Twins fare following the Rabbit Ball season?

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    Chili Davis Baseball Cards

    Page Creator:

    Brock Beauchamp

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    Recommended Comments

    nicksaviking

    nicksaviking 37,959

  • Community Moderator

    • Posted

    His career caught just the beginning of the era of offensive explosion. Had he started and ended his career a half decade later, he might have been the DH to break the HOF barrier. His OPS really took off in the second half of his career.

    I always hated that late century Yankee dynasty, but I still was happy to see Davis win. I always thought of him fondly.

    Kind of like the Dusty Baker situation with the Astros I suppose.

    Link to comment
    https://twinsdaily.com/forums/topic/67242-chili-davis/#findComment-1398285
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