Matt Davidson (baseball)


Matthew Glen Davidson is an American professional baseball third baseman for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball. He made his MLB debut with the Arizona Diamondbacks during the 2013 season and played for the Chicago White Sox from 2016 through 2018.

Career

Davidson attended Yucaipa High School in Yucaipa, California. He committed to attend the University of Southern California on a scholarship to play college baseball for the USC Trojans baseball team. After graduating from high school, the Arizona Diamondbacks selected Davidson in the first round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft. Davidson signed with the Diamondbacks, forgoing his college commitment.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Davidson appeared in 72 games in 2009 for the Yakima Bears. In 2010, Davidson played for the South Bend Silver Hawks of the Class A Midwest League, and hit 16 home runs. He was promoted to the Visalia Rawhide of the Class A-Advanced California League later that season. Prior to the 2011 season, Davidson was ranked as the 99th best prospect by Baseball America. He played for Visalia in 2011. Prior to 2012, he was ranked 97th. That year, he played for the Mobile BayBears of the Class AA Southern League.
Davidson began the 2013 season with the Reno Aces of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. He appeared in the All-Star Futures Game in 2013, and was named the game's most valuable player after he hit a go-ahead two-run home run. A day later, he won the 2013 Triple-A Home Run Derby, hitting 11 home runs across the three rounds, including seven in the first round, to surpass Brock Peterson's 10. The Diamondbacks promoted Davidson to the major leagues on August 11, 2013. He debuted that night with a 1-for-3 performance as an injury substitute for Cody Ross.

Chicago White Sox

On December 16, 2013, the Diamondbacks traded Davidson to the Chicago White Sox for pitcher Addison Reed. He played for the Charlotte Knights of the Class AAA International League in 2014 and 2015. He began the 2016 season with Charlotte and was promoted to the major leagues on June 30, 2016. In his first game with the White Sox, he fractured his foot.
On April 6, 2017, Davidson hit his first career-triple at his first at-bat since breaking his foot in 2016 against the Detroit Tigers. He hit his first home-run for the White Sox, a three-run blast in the fourth inning. He finished the game logging two hits, two runs, and three RBIs.
On June 13, 2017, Davidson hit his first-career Grand Slam against the Baltimore Orioles with the Chicago White Sox. For the season, he had the highest strikeout percentage among major leaguers against right-handed pitchers.
On 2018 Opening Day against the Kansas City Royals on March 29, 2018, Davidson hit three home runs. Davidson became just the fourth player in Major League Baseball History to hit three home runs in a single game on opening day. The White Sox won 14-7.

Texas Rangers

On February 7, 2019, Davidson signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers. He was assigned to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds for the 2019 season, hitting.264/.325/.527/.852 with 33 home runs and 101 RBI. He became a free agent following the 2019 season.

Cincinnati Reds

On January 2, 2020, Davidson signed a minor league deal with the Cincinnati Reds. On July 24, 2020, Davidson had his contract selected to the 40-man roster, and same day, he was the starting designated hitter, making his Reds debut on Opening Day against the Detroit Tigers. But on July 25, 2020, he placed the 10-day injured list for his testing positive for COVID-19.

Personal

Davidson and his wife, Julianne, have two children: a daughter, Brixton, who was born November 2014, and a son, Wake, born July 2016. It was announced on July 25, 2020, that Davidson had tested positive for COVID-19 one day after starting in the season opener.