Eyes wide open

Bears rookie Davidson watching and learning, but not in awe of pro challenge ||

His eyes are open.

As one would expect, Matt Davidson is acutely observant while playing professional baseball barely three months removed from his 18th birthday and three weeks after his graduation from Yucaipa (Calif.) High School.

He is playing in a city he had never seen before, with teammates he had never met before, and he is performing against a level of competition he has never opposed before.

Matt Davidson, Yakima's 18-year-old rookie third baseman, signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks rather than play at Southern California. Photo by GORDON KING/Yakima Herald-Republic

So yes, his eyes are open. But they’re not wide open as if Davidson were in awe, because he isn’t.

“I’ve always wanted to do this,” he says in the Bears dugout before a recent game. “And I’ve thought I could since I was a freshman in high school.”

Davidson was 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds then. He was a pitcher, and wore No. 51 in honor of Randy Johnson.

Now he’s a 6-3, 210-pound third baseman who has dropped the “1” from his jersey number. He said no, thank you, to USC, signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks for a reported $900,000 and thoroughly expects to extend his career from Yakima all the way to the big leagues.

Davidson makes clear such expectations without the slightest hint of arrogance. He addresses his life to this point and his hopes for beyond it with a quiet, matter-of-fact confidence.

But if Davidson speaks softly, he clearly carries a big stick.

Months ago in his 30-game senior season at Yucaipa, Davidson batted .555 with 11 home runs and 45 runs batted in.

That’s why he was chosen by the D-backs with the 35th pick in last month’s draft — an honor not normally accorded someone his age or level of experience unless he’s considered not only a prospect, but one with a can’t-miss label.

“I want to get to the big leagues,” Davidson says, “and I want to make an impact there for a very long time.”

He says this with a tone and demeanor that hints more of anticipation than aspiration. But in the same breath, Davidson says, “I’ve learned so much here over the past week.”

Davidson is learning the pro game in the short-season Class A Northwest League with the idea that it will lead to his climbing the minor league ladder to the majors.

But he seems to clearly understand that he must learn to do this before he can move on to do that.

Davidson’s .222 batting average with one home run and three runs batted in entering Tuesday night’s game at Boise indicate that, from a purely offensive standpoint, he has plenty to learn here.

But that’s fine, both with him and manager Bob Didier.

For one thing, Davidson is 18. For another, his first pro season is still in its infancy.

“He has a long way to go,” said Didier, who at age 60 is in his 43rd year of professional baseball — meaning he started a year younger than Davidson. “He’s probably 10,000 to 20,000 ground balls, 40,000 to 50,000 swings and 400 to 500 games from getting to the major leagues.

“But he’s 18, and he has some ability and he also has a solid work ethic. He has a chance to become an excellent player.”

His chances are better than they might be, Didier said, because Davidson seems grounded. Despite his well-documented potential, Davidson seems to be humble, down to earth and willing to produce the long, solitary hours of work that will be required for his improvement.

“His parents have obviously done an outstanding job with him,” Didier said. “He’s a pleasant, friendly young man. As my Dad would say, you can look into his face and see that he’s a good person.”

Becoming a good player — good enough to be a major leaguer, meanwhile — is more a plan than a dream.

“If you have a dream,” he says, “then it’s like you’re not really expecting it to happen. It’s not really a goal.”

To that end, Davidson chose to forego USC. He decided to start his pro career sooner than later, and the decision wasn’t difficult.

“Not for me, not on that day (June 9, when he was drafted),” Davidson says. “I felt I was ready, and I wanted to get a wooden bat in my hands.”

Nothing against the Trojans or college baseball, Davidson says, but this opportunity better facilitates his long-range plan.

“It wouldn’t really help,” he says, “to play two or three years and learn baseball the Trojan way, and then have to change and learn the Diamondback way.

“This way, for example, I can concentrate on baseball. I don’t have to worry about classes or all the other things that come with going to school. All I have to do now is play baseball and worry about my body and staying healthy.”

And if it doesn’t work? If Davidson should suffer a career-ending injury or, for whatever reason, his big-league plan simply doesn’t happen?

He says he’s extremely close with his family — father Glen, mother Candi, brother Kevin (16) and sister Nicole (12) — most of whom will likely be in town for this week’s series with Spokane. Their support, he says, will sustain him in whatever direction his life takes.

Besides, Davidson says, smiling and looking out on a sun-splashed Yakima County Stadium field, he’s content to take life one game — or day — at a time.

“It’s important to approach every day,” he says, “with the realization that you only get that day once.”

• Roger Underwood can be reached at 509-577-7694 or runderwood@yakimaherald.com