James Houston Davenport (August 17, 1933 – February 18, 2016) was an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

, primarily a

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

, who played his entire career—over 1,500

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

—with the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

(1958–1970). He also managed the Giants (), served as a

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

for them for nine years over three different terms, and spent 51 years in all with the San Francisco organization. The right-handed batter and thrower, nicknamed "Peanut" or "Peanuts" as a child by his grandfather, was listed as tall and .

Early life

Davenport was born and grew up in

Siluria, Alabama Siluria is a former town and now a neighborhood in Alabaster, Alabama, located in Shelby County, Alabama in the Birmingham, Alabama, metropolitan area. It was the home of a large cotton mill and company-built mill village which began operations in ...

, also the birthplace of future teammate Willie Kirkland, and not far from

Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (born May 6, 1931), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid" and "Buck", is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Regarded as one of the greatest players ever, Mays ranks second behind only Babe Ruth on most all-tim ...

' hometown. Growing up, Davenport had wanted to play

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

for the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

. However, Davenport married after high school and Alabama had a policy of not recruiting married players. Instead, he earned a football scholarship to the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...

(then called Mississippi Southern College), where he played quarterback and also joined the baseball team. In 1952 and 1953, he beat an Alabama football team who were quarterbacked both times by

Bart Starr Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was an American professional football quarterback and head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Alab ...

. In 1954, Davenport

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

.439 for the Southern Miss baseball team, and signed a professional contract with the Giants after the season.

Playing career

Davenport made his major league debut with the San Francisco Giants on April 15, 1958, taking the team's first

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

on the West Coast, striking out against

Don Drysdale Donald Scott Drysdale (July 23, 1936 – July 3, 1993) was an American professional baseball player and television sports commentator. A right-handed pitcher for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for his entire career in Major League Baseball, D ...

of the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

Seals Stadium Seals Stadium was a minor league baseball stadium on the west coast of the United States, located in San Francisco, California; it later became the first home of the major league San Francisco Giants. Opened in the Mission District in 1931, Sea ...

. His best season was , when he batted .297 with 14 home runs and 58 RBIs and made the All-Star team for the only time in his career. In the first of 1962's two MLB All-Star games, played July 10 at

DC Stadium Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, commonly known as RFK Stadium and originally known as District of Columbia Stadium, is a defunct multi-purpose stadium in Washington, D.C. It is located about due east of the United States Capitol, U.S. Capit ...

, Davenport took over for

Ken Boyer Kenton Lloyd "Ken" Boyer (May 20, 1931 – September 7, 1982) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman, coach and manager who played with the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers for 15 ...

as the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

's third baseman in the sixth

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

with the Senior Circuit ahead, 2–1. In the eighth frame, his

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off

Dick Donovan Richard Edward Donovan (December 7, 1927 – January 6, 1997) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Boston Braves (1950–1952), Detroit Tigers (1954), Chicago White Sox (1955–1960), Washington Senators (1961) and ...

set up

Maury Wills Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1959 through 1966 and the latter part of ...

' insurance run, as the Nationals ultimately won 3–1. Davenport played errorless ball in the field over the game's last four innings. That same season, Davenport was critical to the Giants' winning their first pennant since moving to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

five years before. After going four for nine (.444) in the first two games of the 1962 National League tie-breaker series against the Dodgers, including a home run off

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...

in Game 1, Davenport drew a bases-loaded

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

off Stan Williams in the ninth inning of the decisive Game 3 to get credit for the

game-winning RBI A game-winning RBI (GWRBI) is a statistic that was used in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1980 to 1988. Building upon the run batted in (RBI) statistic, the ''game-winning'' RBI was defined in MLB rules as "the RBI that gives a club the lead it ...

in the Giants' eventual 6–4 victory, which gained them their first NL title since 1954, when they played in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In the

1962 World Series The 1962 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1962 season. The 59th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in spor ...

that followed, he started all seven games against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

, but could muster only three hits in 22

at bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

(.136), although he drew four more bases on balls. Defensively, he made three errors in 21

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

at third base. The Giants lost the Series in seven games. However, Davenport was known for his fielding, leading National League third basemen in fielding percentage each season from 1959–1961 and winning a Gold Glove at third base in 1962. Davenport played 97 consecutive errorless games at third base from July 26, 1966 to April 28, 1968, a record that stood until it was broken by

John Wehner John Paul Wehner (pronounced "Way-ner") (born June 29, 1967) is an American former utility player in Major League Baseball (MLB) and a current broadcaster for the Pittsburgh Pirates. His nickname is "Rock". Career A Pittsburgh native and graduate ...

in the 1990s. He had a career

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .258 with 77

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 456

RBIs A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

, with 1,142 career hits, also including 177 doubles and 37 triples, in 4,427

s. He played in 1,501 regular-season games in 13 years, the fourth-most in San Francisco Giants history after

Willie McCovey Willie Lee McCovey (January 10, 1938 – October 31, 2018), nicknamed "Stretch", "Mac" and "Willie Mac", was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from 1959 to 1980, most notably as a mem ...

(2,256),

(2,095) and

Barry Bonds Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...

(1,976). His 1,130 games played at third base are the most in Giants' history.

Post-playing career

After retiring as a player, Davenport finished the season as a coach on the staff of manager

Charlie Fox Charles Francis Fox (October 7, 1921 – February 16, 2004) was an American manager, general manager, scout, coach—and, briefly, a catcher—in Major League Baseball. As manager of the National League West Division champion San Francisco Giant ...

. He managed the Triple-A

Phoenix Giants Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

for three years (1971–1973), then came back to

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

for two years (1974–1975), working as third-base coach for skipper John McNamara. He returned to the Giants as their third base coach from 1976–1982, then as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

. Davenport was promoted to

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

of the Giants in 1985, but was replaced September 17 by Roger Craig after compiling a 56–88 record; the club was in last place in the

National League West Division The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...

, 29 games behind the Dodgers at the time. The 1985 team went on to lose 100 games in the worst season in franchise history (to date, it is also the only time the team has ever hit the triple-digit mark in losses). He moved on to work as a coach for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

(1986–1987),

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

(1989) and

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

(1991), and was the Tigers' advance scout in 1992. He returned to the Giants for good in 1993, and served as the club's first base coach in 1996. Overall, Davenport worked in the Giants' organization for 51 years in various roles, including player, coach, scout, manager, and a minor-league instructor. Davenport was inducted into the Southern Miss Athletic Hall of Fame as a quarterback in 1968. He was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 1983. In 2006, Davenport was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

Personal life

He married his high school sweetheart, Betty, and had five children, a daughter and four sons. His son Gary Davenport played minor league baseball in the Giants organization and has coached in the Giants' minor league system since 2004. Davenport lived in

San Carlos, California San Carlos (Spanish for "St. Charles") is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States. The population is 30,722 per the 2020 census. History Native Americans Prior to the Spanish arrival in 1769, the land of San Carlos was occupi ...

and worked in the Giants' front office until his death on February 18, 2016. He is buried in Skylawn Memorial Park near San Francisco. The Giants wore a patch in his memory for the 2016 season, a black circle with an orange outline and his nickname "Davvy" and his number 12, to be worn on the left sleeve, below

Monte Irvin Monford Merrill "Monte" Irvin (February 25, 1919 – January 11, 2016) was an American left fielder and right fielder in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who played with the Newark Eagles (1938–1942, 1946–1948), New York Giant ...

's memorial patch.

References

External links