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Draft  | Story | 5/21/2009

Patience Pays Off for Matt Davidson

Jim Ecker
5 Questions With Matt Davidson

Matt Davidson had some rough times as a hitter last year. Trying too hard to impress the scouts, he swung at bad pitches and got himself out. His batting average tumbled and he did pitchers a favor by expanding his strike zone.
 
No more.
 
"I've matured a lot since last year," Davidson told Perfect Game. "Last year, I did want to go after those pitches and swing at those pitches. I was swinging at bad pitches and not getting my pitch. This year I let it go. I lay off it. I take my walks."
 
Davidson, a third baseman and pitcher from Yucaipa, Calif., hit about .360 as a junior last year and was not happy with his production. This year, being more selective at the plate, he was hitting a robust .566 with 10 homers and 41 RBIs at last report.
 
He's considered one of the top high school prospects for the draft this June, and he's got a college scholarship to Southern Cal if he wants it. Life is good again for Davidson and the Yucaipa Thunderbirds.
 
The Thunderbirds went through a five-game stretch this month where they battered the opponents by scores of 16-7, 15-1, 16-3, 12-1 and 23-0. They've also won games this season by 21-1, 20-1 and 35-1. Yes, the T-Birds can hit.
 
"Everybody is hitting," said Davidson. "Last year, we'd all hit one game, and then the next game we wouldn't hit. Now we're all hitting."
 
If Davidson sees a good pitch to hit, he takes a whack at it. If not, he lets it go.
 
"I've been walked 25 times and I've been hit like 12 times," he said. "So I usually get walked, and our No.4 hitter gets to hit. He's getting fastballs right down the middle."
Davidson was plunked 12 times in Yucaipa's first 27 games, which is a lot. He suspects that some pitchers were deliberately throwing at him. "Definitely," he said. "There are some games where I don't ever get to swing at the ball. They just totally take me out of the game. You have to accept it and take it for what it is, and when you get your pitches, you just have to hit them."

Davidson, who's a strong 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, burst on the California high school scene as a freshman in 2006 when he was named the MVP of the Citrus Belt League in southern California. He went 10-1 with a 0.76 ERA, pitched a no-hitter and socked eight home runs. Since then, he's helped a USA Baseball Youth Team win the title at a tournament in Venezuela and was selected to play in the Aflac High School All-American game last year.
 
Davidson said he's known since he was 10 years old that he wanted to be a baseball player. He credits his parents for teaching him a good work ethic, something he carries onto the field.
 
"I just love baseball," he said. "I love watching it on TV. That's what I want to be. I mean, that's what makes me happy."
 
Davidson reached the varsity at Yucaipa when he was 14 years old, competing against players who were 17 and 18. Nonetheless, he was recognized as the league's top player at a tender age.
 
"It was weird, because I always looked up to those guys and thought they were so much bigger and older," he said. "I felt like I could play with them. I really got serious when I saw what I could do. It was really a trip."
 
Davidson, now 18, was not attending school on the same campus with his older teammates when he was a freshman. The building that housed the freshmen was separate from the campus for the sophomores, juniors and seniors. His campus was about a mile away from the main campus, and he wasn't old enough to drive.
 
"I always got picked up by the head coach for games and stuff," he said. "And then for practices there was a bus that went down there. It was definitely weird."
 
And even though Davidson cracked the lineup as a freshman, he didn't take anything for granted.
 
"I never settle," he said. "If I went 0-for-3, I was worried and I went home and I hit and I worked on it for the next day."
 
All that hard work -- and patience -- have paid off. The pro scouts are looking at Davidson as strictly a third baseman, and if he goes to USC he'll play third base and maybe pitch a little. He figures it's a win-win situation.
 
"I want to play pro ball, but you have to make the right decision and not go for nothing," he said. "The draft is in three weeks and we'll go from there. We'll just see how it plays out."
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Draft | Prospect Scouting Reports | 6/26/2026

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Michael Albee
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