Brennen Davis in Concussion Protocol After Tuesday HBP

Brennen Davis has to be one of the most snakebit players in recent memory, and much of his poor fortune has come from being hit by pitches. A few of those incidents came very early in his professional career, leading to a broken right index finger that limited his time at South Bend — which was then Low-A — back in 2019. He spent 2020 at the Cubs’ alternate site, then was held to 53 plate appearances in as a concussion delayed the start of his 2021 campaign.

A nerve issue in his lower back required surgical correction, derailing much of his 2022 campaign, after which he missed six weeks last year following core-muscle surgery. Now comes news that has again been placed in concussion protocol after being hit by a pitch in Tuesday’s game. Davis had collected three hits, including a homer, in four Cactus League games and was looking like his old self prior to this latest setback.

Once the Cubs’ top-rated prospect and a consensus top-100 overall prospect, Davis has logged 1,199 plate appearances across parts of five seasons. While that would typically be more than enough experience, the sporadic nature of his work in the minors means he was almost an afterthought heading into camp. Many now view him as an unfortunate cautionary tale used to prove that the greatest ability is availability.

But here’s the thing: Davis just turned 24 this past November and is only now entering his athletic prime. Provided the various issues haven’t robbed him of that prematurely, he could still have several years of excellent baseball ahead of him. This is no time to push it with even minor issues, so let’s hope he’ll be cleared to return to the field soon and that he can make good on all that potential.