The most important trait Brewers' GM Doug Melvin was looking for this winter in trying to rebuild his pitching staff was durability.
The Brewers were devastated last season due to injury and ineffectiveness by their starters, and Melvin needed to find pitchers he could count on to make every start, while still giving the team a shot to win.
Melvin not only found one starter, he brought in a second one as well. While Randy Wolf was the big-name, high-priced acquisition, when Melvin signed Doug Davis, he brought in not only a familiar face, but one of the most reliable arms in the game.
Over the past six seasons, the only year Davis hasn't pitched at least 192 innings in a season was 2008. He threw only 146 innings that year. Of course he had a good reason for missing time. He missed six weeks that year due to radiation treatment for thyroid cancer.
Brewer fans are quite familiar with Davis. He toed the mound in Milwaukee from 2003-2006. In that time, he compiled a 37-36 record with a 3.92 ERA in 111 starts.
Davis is best known for his stubbornness on the mound, unwilling to give into a hitter, no matter the situation.
That leads to two things: high walk totals and long games for fans to watch.
A typical pitching line for Davis might look something like the following: six innings pitched, four hits, five walks, and three runs allowed. The time of the game almost always goes well past the three-hour mark.
Davis has a career ERA of 4.31. Although that isn't overly impressive, it's almost a full run better than the combined ERA of the Brewers' starters in 2009. Davis doesn't need to be special for the Brewers to rebound in 2010, he just needs to be himself.
Davis' spot is pretty clear barring any type of injury. He'll be the team's third starter, slotting behind Yovani Gallardo and Randy Wolf.
The Brewers have a surplus of lefties on their roster. It could cause problems for them, especially since the rosters of the NL Central teams are mainly stocked with right-handed hitters.
In addition to Davis and Wolf, the Brewers also have Manny Parra and Chris Narveson returning as pitchers that spent time in the rotation last year. Chris Capuano and John Halama are also lefties on the team's radar, and each was given a non-roster invite to Spring Training.
Davis has already been counted on by the Brewers to anchor a staff that was plagued by injury and ineffectiveness. Both he and Capuano stepped up for the team in the past when Ben Sheets spent significant time on the disabled list.
If he can limit his walks, he'll have a chance to win 15 games. The team's young defense will have to play well for Davis as well. He gives up a lot of hits, so Carlos Gomez and Alcides Escobar will be tested early and often.
Fans shouldn't expect anything different from Davis than what they saw in his previous stint with the Brewers. He will make his 30-plus starts, throw at least 200 innings, and finish with an ERA around 4.25.
That's not spectacular, but the Brewers don't need spectacular. They need health and reliability. There are few pitchers in baseball that embody those traits as well as Doug Davis. A return trip to Milwaukee is just what he and the Brewers need for a hope at the playoffs in 2010.
To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here .
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