NEW YORK — The New York Yankees let a promising power hitter slip through their fingers. While the organization chases free agents like Cody Bellinger, they quietly lost a 26-year-old outfielder who smashed baseballs at an elite rate in 2025.
The news broke this week that Brennen Davis signed with the Seattle Mariners on Dec. 18. He will report to their Triple-A Tacoma affiliate. The move went largely unnoticed amid the chaos of the Yankees’ stalled negotiations with Bellinger and their pursuit of other targets.
Davis posted a .975 OPS across three minor league levels last season while wearing pinstripes. He clubbed 17 home runs in just 170 at-bats. That works out to one homer every 10 official trips to the plate.
A former top-five prospect rebuilds his stock
Davis was not always a forgotten name in baseball circles. The Chicago Cubs selected him in the second round of the 2018 draft out of Basha High School in Chandler, Arizona. He signed for a $1.1 million bonus and quickly climbed prospect rankings.
By 2022, MLB Pipeline rated him as the No. 15 overall prospect in baseball. He sat at No. 3 in the Cubs’ system. The 6-foot-2 outfielder earned MVP honors at the 2021 All-Star Futures Game. He launched two home runs in that showcase event.
Davis seemed destined for stardom. Then injuries arrived and refused to leave.
A brutal stretch of health problems derails his path
Surgeries to his back and core muscles sidelined Davis. A separate back injury followed. Multiple concussions further delayed his development. A severe ankle fracture in September 2024 ended that season early.
The Cubs finally gave up after the 2024 campaign. They designated him for assignment in November and non-tendered him shortly after. The once-heralded prospect became a free agent looking for a new home.
The Yankees stepped in that December. They signed Davis to a minor league contract and assigned him to work his way back through their system.
Davis shows Yankees exactly what he can do
The outfielder responded with one of the best seasons of his professional career. He split time between Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Double-A Somerset and the rookie-level Florida Complex League. His combined numbers told an impressive story.
Davis batted .271 with a .364 on-base percentage and .612 slugging percentage. Those 17 home runs in 170 at-bats came at a rate that dwarfs most prospects.
For context, Roman Anthony was the No. 1 overall prospect in baseball heading into 2025. He hit 10 home runs in 212 at-bats during his final minor league stint before joining the Boston Red Sox. That equals one homer every 22.2 at-bats.
Aaron Judge went deep 19 times in 352 at-bats during his final minor league season in 2016. That comes out to one homer every 18.5 at-bats. Davis nearly doubled that production rate in 2025.
RailRiders manager Shelley Duncan praised Davis during the season.
“He’s the new face of the team that’s added a huge right-handed power bat to our lineup,” Duncan said. “He allows us to be extremely, extremely deep. He’s got some pretty unreal power. He hits fly balls that get up there and you think are normal fly balls. But they just keep going and going.”
The front office lets him walk without a fight
Despite the impressive numbers, the Yankees chose not to retain Davis. He elected free agency on Nov. 6, 2025, after the season ended. The organization made no effort to bring him back.
The Mariners scooped him up six weeks later. Davis joins an organization that has struggled to develop consistent offensive production. Seattle finished 2025 in the bottom half of the American League in runs scored.
Davis remains only 26 years old. That age suggests further development is possible. His career minor league OPS of .792 shows solid baseline production even before his breakout 2025 campaign.
The move raises questions about priorities in the Bronx
The Yankees find themselves in an awkward position this winter. NJ.com’s Randy Miller and Bob Klapisch wrote on Thursday that the team is “flunking” their offseason. The Bellinger negotiations remain stuck over contract length. Other targets like Bo Bichette and Kyle Tucker appear headed elsewhere.
Meanwhile, the organization allowed a player with legitimate power potential to leave for nothing. Davis spent one year proving he could produce at the highest minor league levels. The Yankees apparently saw enough to say no thanks.
The decision becomes even more puzzling when considering the outfield situation. Shortstop Anthony Volpe underwent shoulder surgery in October and may miss the start of 2026. The lineup needs right-handed pop. Davis provided exactly that during his time in the system.
Davis himself acknowledged the winning culture during his time with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
“Minor-league sweeps are hard to come by,” Davis said during a hot streak last June. “We’ve just been kind of putting it together. Our offense is firing on a lot of cylinders. There’s a lot of really good hitters in the lineup and it shows.”
Now those cylinders will fire for Seattle instead of New York. The Yankees will have to hope their bigger moves work out. The loss of Davis may seem minor today. It could look much different if he reaches the majors and starts producing for a division rival.
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