20 candles
He’s not a teenager anymore, but in baseball terms, D.J. Davis is still a kid — and still raw. The former Stone County High standout, the first Mississippian drafted in 2012, turned 20 today. He is celebrating, we presume, in Peoria, if that is possible, where he and his Lansing Lugnuts teammates are scheduled for a Midwest League game. Davis, a left-handed hitting outfielder, was the 17th overall pick as a 17-year-old by the Toronto Blue Jays, who reportedly loved his speed. He is rated the No. 4 prospect in that system by mlb.com but obviously still has room to grow. Davis, 6 feet 1, 180 pounds, has shown some pop this season with 11 doubles and seven home runs, and his wheels have produced five triples and 12 steals. He’s got 40 RBIs and 45 runs in 88 games. But he is hitting just .213 (.271 on-base percentage) and has fanned 124 times in 367 at-bats with only 28 walks. And this is in low-A ball. The pitching will only get better as he advances. But again, at 20, Davis is young. He’s got time.