Giants: Jaylin Davis could be the next Mike Yastrzemski

Mike Yastrzemski came out of nowhere to become one of the San Francisco Giants best hitters in 2019. Could slugger Jaylin Davis be the big surprise of 2020?

Mike Yastrzemski was one of the few bright spots for the San Francisco Giants in 2019, and he will be a big part of the team in 2020.

Could another outfielder step up and surprise us all in 2020?

With Kevin Pillar gone as the everyday center fielder, team president Farhan Zaidi made it clear that some of the team’s younger players will get opportunities to replace the team’s best offensive player from a season ago.

That includes speedy center fielder Steven Duggar and versatile corner outfielder Austin Slater, but it also includes a man who got some playing time last year: Jaylin Davis.

In 47 plate appearances, Davis recorded seven hits for an average of .167 with three RBI and a home run. That home run was a memorable one, though, as it was a walk-off in late September against the Colorado Rockies:

Overall, the numbers are not impressive, but his minor league statistics should at least inspire some confidence that he can be a solid contributor at the MLB level.

Last year at the Triple-A level, he hit .332/.410/.699 with 25 home runs and 69 RBI in 68 games.

Based off of that level of production, it is clear why the Giants gave him a September call-up to see how he would fare against big league pitching.

He should get plenty more opportunities in 2020.

Duggar looks like the early favorite to fill the vacant center field spot, with Yastrzemski and Alex Dickerson as the likely starters at the corner outfield spots. With a stellar spring, Davis could push his way into the playing time picture.

It’s important to remember that no one saw Yastrzemski’s 2019 season coming. At one point, it even looked like he might be demoted to Triple-A. But he became so prolific on offense that he forced their hand and held onto his spot on the MLB roster.

Now we could be in for a similar surprise year from Davis.

He has proven that he can produce well in the upper levels of the minor leagues, and he could be just a few tweaks or a hot streak away from putting up solid numbers at the big league level.

He may not have an All-Star year, but flying under the radar he could turn some heads in spring and force his way into the outfield conversation for the Giants.