Before he left Baltimore for the All-Star Game, Orioles reliever Darren O’Day made a promise to his fellow relief pitchers.
“I’m going to sniff around Wade Davis when he’s warming up,” O’Day said, “because we want to see what he’s doing.”
What Davis is doing for the Kansas City Royals almost defies explanation. From the time he became a full-time reliever in September 2013 through the All-Star break, Davis had pitched in 117 regular-season and postseason games. His E.R.A. was 0.80, with 180 strikeouts in 1351/3 innings with no home runs allowed.
“I’ve been in awe of him since he picked up a ball,” said Chris Sale, the overpowering starter for the Chicago White Sox.