Davis enjoys life off field with RC cars, boxing

CHICAGO – When the final out in an Oakland A’s game is recorded, slugger Khris Davis hopes to walk away from the park and disconnect.

You won’t find him sharing an Instagram post or tweeting about the night’s game like other players do nowadays.

Heck, he doesn’t even want to leave the stadium and be known as just Khris Davis, Oakland A’s slugger.

“I like to forget I’m a baseball player,” Davis said.

The son of a Mexican mother and an African-American father, Davis enjoys the game that has become his way of making a living.

But it’s not his way of life.

When the game is over, Davis would prefer to get home, spend time with his family and do many of the countless activities they enjoy. Davis and his son, Pablo, will grab their collection of remote-control cars and play with them. Then they’ll pack them up and find time to put together puzzles.

In many ways, he’s like the modern ballplayer; you won’t often find them going out and spending late nights out after games or on days off. Instead, you’ll find them racing back to their homes or hotel rooms to play video games or watch Netflix.

Davis doesn’t go out much. He’d rather load up Call of Duty Black Ops III and play a round of Zombies, loading into the Shadows of Evil map. The map was the first Zombies map for the game that was released in 2015.

“Yeah, I think social media might have an impact on that,” Davis said. “Just being in the eye isn’t always fun, so I like to just stay home.”

Unlike most other players, though, you won’t see Davis sharing his newest ride, his newest outfit or even his latest victory in Call of Duty on any social media. Davis has no official social media channels.

That’s just the way he likes it, too.

“If you’re tied to your phone or whatever, always checking your phone [or] newsfeed,” Davis said, “I feel you kind of just forget how to be human.”

That’s how Davis was raised.

His father, Rodney, played in the Dodgers organization before becoming a scout. Rodney Davis would take his son to ballparks with him. His mother, Sonia, was born in Mexico and raised in the Los Angeles area. The younger Davis would spend some time in the summer with his grandparents in Mexico.

Davis was a true outdoorsman in his mom’s home country. He’d hang out on his family’s ranch, go fishing and live “the outdoors life.” You couldn’t keep him indoors.

“Growing up, those are my favorite memories,” Davis said.

Mexico is where he began to define his sweet, slick swing that would carry him to be one of the game’s premier power hitters.

He would grab a broomstick, head outside and hit rocks, beans and anything else he could grab to replicate a ball. He knows those make-shift games in Mexico were difference-makers in helping him craft his swing.

And even now, Davis, just like his personal life, likes to use other methods to stay in shape besides baseball. In the offseason, Davis boxes to stay in shape. He started with just some light glove work, but then quickly realized how boxing helped his hand-eye coordination.

“I like just hitting things,” Davis said. “We just do a little routine in the offseason.”

Don’t get it mistaken, though. Just because he enjoys so much more off the field, doesn’t mean he’s not a baseball junkie. He loves baseball. He loves the camaraderie with his teammates.  After all, it’s still a game.

“I like to just joke around and try not to take things so serious all the time,” Davis said. “So, I just try to find ways to have fun with the boys.”

Featured Image: Thearon W. Henderson / Stringer