O's say can you see: Eyes on video star Davis

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Without a doubt, Adley Rutschman is the Orioles catcher who will draw the most attention this spring. It¡¯s a level of notoriety that naturally flows to baseball¡¯s No. 4 prospect. But Baltimore has another backstop in the fold who is familiar with a certain celebrity status, albeit of a less traditional nature. A No.1 overall Draft pick is one thing. A viral internet sensation? That¡¯s something else entirely.

Two lockers down from Rutschman in the Orioles clubhouse resides Taylor Davis, a 30-year-old backstop with the exact opposite background from Rutschman, but with a rabid following of his own. From a 49th-round Draft pick out of high school in 2008 to an undrafted free agent out of college, Davis was a seven-year Minor League veteran in the Cubs system on Opening Day 2017 when his life changed forever -- and in the blink of an eye.

That¡¯s when at Triple-A Iowa, Davis first got into the habit of staring into the ballpark camera during the national anthem. His teammates found it hilarious, so he did it again the next day. And the day after that. Soon, whenever there was a camera present -- during the anthem, in the dugout, on the sidelines before the game, Davis would find it. And people began to notice.

¡°They thought that was the funniest thing,¡± Davis said. ¡°A couple weeks into it, I definitely figured out people liked it, so I kept it going all year.¡±

At some point, the Iowa Cubs¡¯ digital marketing team created a mashup video of Davis that gave the bit a life of its own. Set to the tune of Frankie Valli¡¯s ¡°Can¡¯t Take My Eyes Off You,¡± the video strung together clips of Davis hamming it up for the camera and it instantly took off. It got millions of Facebook views, spread through the sports blogosphere and scored Davis interviews with ESPN and offers from reality-TV producers. Overnight, the anonymous career Minor Leaguer had become an unlikely star.

¡°One day, our public relations person came in and said: ¡®You have a SportsCenter interview [on ESPN] tomorrow.¡¯ I was like: ¡®What?!¡¯¡± Davis said. ¡°I¡¯ve always been a believer in: I want you to smile one way or another when you come [to] the field. Whether it¡¯s smiling because I did something cool or because I did something funny, I want you to smile. I want you to have fun!¡±

As he did then, Davis admits now the act was not originally his. That credit goes to former Iowa teammate Kristopher Negr¨®n, who saw big league time with the Reds, D-backs, Mariners and Dodgers. But Davis¡¯ version had the bigger impact, and has left a lasting impression. The Iowa Cubs¡¯ video, which has more than 648,000 YouTube views, has been making the rounds again this spring at Orioles camp. Some of Davis¡¯ new teammates have recognized him from the clip. Others are entertained when finding it for the first time.

¡°When you¡¯re sitting there and it¡¯s 105 degrees out for the national anthem, if you can get a good laugh in, it¡¯s always a good day,¡± said left-hander Rob Zastryzny, who was also Davis¡¯ teammate at Iowa in 2017 and ¡¯18. ¡°I¡¯ve watched it probably 40 times myself. It doesn¡¯t get old, because it isn¡¯t something you see all the time. You do an anthem before every game, for 140 games, it gives you something that reminds you it¡¯s still a fun game. He kept things loose.¡±

That, Davis says now, was his intention all along. As for personal upshot, the hijinks got Davis verified on Instagram and ratcheted up media intrigue when he made his big league debut in September 2017. He would appear in 20 games over the next three seasons for the Cubs, spending the bulk of those years with Iowa. Davis signed a Minor League deal this winter with Baltimore, where he profiles as depth behind Pedro Severino, Chance Sisco and others.

Baltimore¡¯s spring schedule begins with a game against the Braves on Saturday. Does Davis have any second act in the works?

¡°I think that should be a surprise for the fans,¡± he said. ¡°Tell them to keep an eye out.¡±

Around the horn
By the time the team¡¯s light full-squad report-date workout concluded around noon on Sunday, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said he did not expect any players to arrive late to camp. Among the new reports spotted at the complex on Sunday morning were Hanser Alberto, Richard Ure?a and No. 5 prospect Yusniel Diaz.

From the trainer¡¯s room
Sidelined most of the week due to illness, righty reliever Mychal Givens and catcher Pedro Severino were medically cleared on Sunday. Givens played catch and is scheduled to return to the mound on Monday, while Severino took batting practice and won¡¯t be limited in Monday¡¯s full-squad workout. One player not participating will be Hunter Harvey, who remains under the weather, per Hyde.

Up next
The Orioles first full-squad workout is scheduled for Monday at the club's Ed Smith Stadium complex. Admission is free for workouts. Gates open to fans at approximately 9 a.m. ET.