Willie Davis
Willie Davis was the fastest man in baseball in the 1960s, patrolling center field for the Los Angeles Dodgers, stealing 20 or more bases 11 straight seasons, and playing on three pennant-winning teams. In 1969 he enjoyed a 31-game hitting streak, the longest in baseball in almost a quarter-century. He retired with 2,561 hits, 398 steals, 182 homers, and a .279 average.
Played For
Los Angeles Dodgers (1960-1973)
Montreal Expos (1974)
Texas Rangers (1975)
St. Louis Cardinals (1975)
San Diego Padres (1976)
California Angels (1979)
All-Time Rankings
Willie Davis ranks #25 among the Top 50 all-time at CF. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1962
In his sophomore season, 22-year old Davis played center field, hit .285, and swiped 32 bases. He scored 103 runs with 10 triples, 21 homers and 85 RBI. He and Maury Wills provided speed at the top of the Dodgers lineup. LA lost a special playoff for the NL pennant, to the Giants.
The Hitting Streak
On the morning of August 1, 1969, Willie Davis was hitting .260, and the Dodgers were two games behind the Braves in the National League West race. That night against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, Davis went 1-for-4 in a loss, but a hitting streak had begun. The next two games against the Cardinals, Davis was 2-for-4, and against Pittsburgh on the 5th, 6th and 8th, he enjoyed three-hit games. He was 15-for-his-last-27. His tear continued as he racked up two multiple-hit games against the Cards in LA, one at Montreal, two at Philadelphia, three straight in Shea against the Mets, and two more against the Expos in Dodger Stadium. When his streak reached 26 games on August 29 against the Phillies, Davis had banged out multiple-hit games in 16 of the games. On September 2, he was 1-for-5 off the Mets, running the batting streak to 30 games, only the 26th time that had occurred in history. Davis extended the string to 31 games the next night, and was stopped on September 4 at San Diego by Dick Kelley and Gary Ross. The next night he took out his revenge, slashing four hits off Joe Niekro, and raising his batting average to .319.
In the 31 games, Davis hit a blistering .435 (54-for-124), raising his season mark 56 points in the process. He scored 20 runs, drove in 23, and stole 11 bases. The Dodgers were 18-13 during Willie's streak, but were able to gain just one game in the standings. At season's end, Willie finished at .311 (seventh in the NL), and the Dodgers came in eight games back of the Braves.
Where He Played
Davis played more than 2,200 games in center field.
Born
William Henry Davis was born on April 15, 1940, in Mineral Springs, AR.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
Primary Position: OF
Primary Team: LAN
Major League Debut
September 8, 1960
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1960
Willie Davis
Ron Santo
Joe Torre
Leo Cardenas
Deron Johnson
Dick McAuliffe
Matty Alou
Phil Regan
Ray Sadecki
"Three-Dog" because of his uniform number.
Uniform Numbers
#26 (1960), #3 (1961-1973, 1975, 1976 Padres), #1 (1974), #5 (1975 Cardinals), #24 (1979)
Similar Players
Jose Cardenal, Willie Wilson
Related Players
Tommy Davis, who was no relation, played alongside Willie in the Dodgers' outfield from 1960 to 1966... Maury Wills teamed with Willie Davis for 136 stolen bases in 1962, the highest total by teammates in history at that time. Davis was probably the fastest man to never lead his league in steals.
Post-Season Appearances
1963 World Series
1965 World Series
1966 World Series
1979 American League Championship Series
Post-Season Notes
In the fifth inning of Game Two of the 1966 World Series, Davis committed not one, not two, but three errors. The previous fall, Davis had stolen three bases in a World Series game against the Twins, setting a record.
Awards and Honors
1971 NL Gold Glove
1972 NL Gold Glove
1973 NL Gold Glove
Milestones
At the age of 31, Davis had nearly an even chance to get to 3,000 hits. But then, at the age of 34-35, his legs abandoned him and he was done. He played in Japan and tried to make a comeback, but he was unable to get out of the 2,500-hit range.
Batting Feats
Hitting Streaks
31 games (1969)
25 games (1971)
17 games (1965)
16 games (1971)
Transactions
June 20, 1958: Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent; December 5, 1973: Traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Montreal Expos for Mike Marshall; December 5, 1974: Traded by the Montreal Expos to the Texas Rangers for Don Stanhouse and Pete Mackanin; June 4, 1975: Traded by the Texas Rangers to the St. Louis Cardinals for Ed Brinkman and Tommy Moore; October 20, 1975: Traded by the St. Louis Cardinals to the San Diego Padres for Dick Sharon; January 22, 1977: Released by the San Diego Padres; March 27, 1979: Signed as a Free Agent with the California Angels.
All-Star Selections
1971 NL
1973 NL
Replaced
The Dodgers had used several players in center in 1960, including Duke Snider, Don Demeter, and Willie. In '61, Davis was the starter, where he stayed for the Dodgers for 13 seasons.
Replaced By
The Padres had George Hendrick in center in 1977, the year after Willie was let go.
Best Strength as a Player
Speed
Largest Weakness as a Player
Patience at the plate.
Learn More about Willie Davis
Search Amazon.com for Books about Willie Davis ⇒
Search for Willie Davis at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
