Mark William Davis (born October 19, 1960) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Davis played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies (1980–1981, 1993), San Francisco Giants (1983–1987), San Diego Padres (1987–1989, 1993–1994), Kansas City Royals (1990–1992), Atlanta Braves (1992), and Milwaukee Brewers (1997). He won the National League Cy Young Award in 1989, as a relief pitcher for the Padres. Davis batted and threw left-handed. He was the Minor League Pitching Coordinator for the Kansas City Royals organization, but stepped aside after the 2011 season to coach a single short-season affiliate in 2012.
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Playing career
Davis began his career in 1980 with the Philadelphia Phillies. He spent parts of five seasons with the San Francisco Giants after being dealt along with Mike Krukow and minor-league outfielder C.L. Penigar from the Phillies for Joe Morgan and Al Holland on December 14, 1982. He started a career-high 27 games in 1984 for a 5–17 win–loss record. He became a primary reliever the following season, but he did not establish himself as a top reliever until being traded to San Diego during the 1987 midseason.
In 1988, Davis became the Padres' closer, earning 28 saves and 44 in 1989, appearing in the All-Star Game in both seasons. He was a Cy Young Award winner in 1989 after a 1.85 ERA and 65 games finished in addition to his league-leading save total. In the last month of the season, he pitched 25 innings and did not allow any of the 19 runners he inherited to score. He was the fourth closer so honored in Award history. No closer would win the NL Cy Young again until Éric Gagné in 2003.