Davenport Passes

Former third baseman Jim Davenport died Thursday at age 82.

On a team full of larger-than-life players, many bound for the Hall of Fame, Jim Davenport was a diminutive third baseman nicknamed “Peanut.” With Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry as teammates, Davenport hardly stood out.

The story was much different inside the clubhouse. Davenport, who died of heart failure in Redwood City on Thursday night at 82, was a beloved and important part of the team from the time he debuted in 1958, the year the Giants moved to San Francisco.

“There were so many big players there, you understand? Hall of Fame type of guys,” teammate Felipe Alou said Friday. “Some of us really weren’t that big, but Davvy was a big player, a big part of those teams.”

My thoughts go out to his family and friends.

Davenport’s best year was 1962, when he posted a .297/.357/.456 slash line and won the gold glove. His prime was very short, consisting of 1961 and 1962, the rest of his career not approaching those two seasons. Maybe the dilution of pitching talent during expansion worked for him.

from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/1KZYwQM