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The Mets have signed outfielder Rajai Davis to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training. The 38-year-old spent the 2018 season with the Cleveland Indians and hit just .224/.278/.281 in 216 plate appearances.
When he did get on base, Davis stole 21 bases in 28 attempts, a 75 percent success rate. Back in 2016, he led the American League with 43 stolen bases, even though he hit just .249/.306/.388 that year, but he hasn’t had an above-league-average season at the plate since 2015.
Still, this sort of signing should be considered a move without downside. If the Mets pencil Davis in and do nothing else to shore up their outfield depth, that’s bad. But if they’re not committing anything to him and are still planning to go out and acquire outfielders who might reasonably be able to start at the major league level for extended periods of time, there’s no harm in bringing him into spring training.