Rajai Davis forgets jersey, borrows from bench coach Gene Lamont
Spring training games are confusing enough with all those players from minor league camp wearing numbers in the 80s and 90s. Now imagine the confusion of Detroit Tigers fans on Saturday when a player they could have sworn was outfielder Rajai Davis walked to the plate wearing a jersey they could have sworn belonged to bench coach Gene Lamont.
On second look, that’s definitely Gene Lamont’s No. 22 jersey. So what in the world is going on out there?
[Baseball is back! Check out Yahoo For Spring Training for great spring training pics.]
Well, it turns out that Davis was among the Tigers players selected to go on the road for Detroit’s split squad game against the New York Yankees, and somebody forgot to pack his jersey. Perhaps there was some confusion over which players were staying back at the Tigers complex to play the Philadelphia Phillies. That could easily happen, especially considering how rare it is for a veteran player like Davis to get a road assignment when the squad is split.
Whatever the case, Davis had to borrow the uniform of bench coach Gene Lamont, who was serving as acting manager for the game and apparently was the only guy around who wears the same size jersey.
Lamont, of course, was not impressed, but thankfully remembered to pack his windbreaker.
Scenarios like this are probably why our Little League and high school coaches always had us get dressed before we got on the bus.
[Yahoo Sports Fantasy Baseball: Sign up and join a league today!]
With that said though, there was a happy ending on Saturday. By the time the fourth inning rolled around, Davis either ate a Snickers and turned back into himself or his jersey was finally delivered to the ballpark. Wearing his usual No. 20 in his next at-bat, Davis doubled for Detroit’s first hit and then came around to score the tying run.
That’s the Rajai Davis Tigers’ fans like to see, though we’re sure they won’t soon forget the day he briefly morphed into their 68-year-old bench coach.
BLS H/N: Eye on Baseball
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
