2019 Postseason All-Star Outfielder Re-Signs with Southern Illinois
Marion, IL (March 11, 2020) – The Southern Illinois Miners announce that outfielder Kyle Davis has re-signed with the club, further strengthening their lineup for the upcoming 2020 season.
Davis originally came to the Miners as a free agent in the middle of the 2018 season, and last year became a postseason all-star for Southern Illinois, batting .280 with team-best totals of 25 doubles, 15 home runs, 62 RBIs, and 56 runs scored, adding 97 total hits in 93 games played. Defensively, he also played five different positions for the club, including both corner outfield spots.
He particularly excelled down the stretch during the Miners’ playoff push, batting .358 in August along with nine doubles, five home runs, and 29 RBIs in 28 contests. He also ranked among the Frontier League’s leaders with a .434 on-base percentage and a .604 slugging percentage during that span.
“Southern Illinois is the closest thing to affiliated baseball in how they treat you (as a player),” Davis said. “After seeing the other signings, I knew this team could be special. I wanted the best opportunity to win a championship, and I thought Southern Illinois was the place to do that this year.”
A former 15th-round selection in the 2017 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros, the Cincinnati native was named All-Big 12 in each of his three seasons at West Virginia University, including Second Team All-Big 12 as a junior in 2017, when he hit .316 with 10 home runs, 44 RBIs, 13 doubles and 74 hits in 62 games. He was also named an ABCA First Team All-Region selection that year.
“I am very happy to have Kyle coming back to us,” Miners manager Mike Pinto said. “He was a free agent, and had a number of offers to go other places, so we appreciate that he wanted to return to Southern Illinois. Kyle really came into his own last year, and got better and better throughout the season. He is an impact power bat, but brings so many other things to the club as well.”
