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By Alexis Brudnicki
PBR Ontario Lead Writer

His invitation to the inaugural Tournament 12 got lost in the mail.

It’s a good thing Cooper Davis eventually received it, because when the then-14-year-old made his debut at a big-league stadium at the Toronto Blue Jays-hosted showcase, he started to solidify his name among the Canadian prospects to watch.

“Being invited to T12 last year was surprising because of my age and I didn’t know what T12 was,” Davis said. “They had sent me an invite to an email address I wasn’t using so I wasn’t aware of it until my [Ontario Blue Jays] coach asked me why I hadn’t responded, about two weeks before the event.

“I guess people believed I had something to show and I hoped I wouldn’t disappoint them. This year I expected to be invited back and worked hard to try to be noticeably faster, a better hitter, baserunner, and stronger defensively.”

A relatively unheralded young player coming up with the Ontario Blue Jays after getting his baseball start with the Mississauga Tigers, Davis certainly didn’t disappoint in the tournament’s second year and his encore appearance.

“There is [more to prove],” Davis, now 15, said. “But I have more to offer. I feel like I’ve gotten better in the last year and I still need to improve. I don’t want to get worse so I want to keep improving and try to get here again next year and keep working from there.”

Davis (pictured right), a 5-foot-10, 160-pound outfielder from Mississauga, led all runners in the 60-yard dash on the tournament’s workout day, posting an official time of 6.45 seconds. Constantly grouped with Adam Hall because both players are the same age, the 5-foot-10, 160-pound shortstop hailing from London was right behind him with an official time of 6.57 seconds.

“He got me right at the end,” Hall said of Davis.

One American League scout said: “Both looked great. It’s hard for kids who already have such high expectations to continue to impress, but Cooper was the best runner of the day and his swing looks great. Adam ran almost as well and shows such a feel for hitting. They both have the edge we all love and I get excited watching them play.”

After settling in during his first Tournament 12 appearance last September, Davis felt more at ease the second time around.

“It was just crazy to be playing on the Rogers Centre field,” he said of last year. “I just wanted to not look too out of place. This year the team was better and I was better, which made the experience even more amazing than last year. We were competitive almost every game. I felt I was able to contribute and impact the outcome of the game.”

After learning from his first experience, Davis was also more able to take advantage of the opportunities and resources the tournament offered to him at the latest event.

“Last year was awesome, playing with all the older guys and learning so much from all of them, and coming out and playing where all the big leaguers play,” he said. “It was crazy…Talking to the coaches was the best part. They have so many experiences that they shared with us and they’ve been through pretty much everything so they know what to tell you and how to play.”

Former Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Devon White was quite possibly one of the most impressed by Davis, after having seen him at both editions of Tournament 12 and seeing the improvements he was able to make between them.

“That’s my boy,” White said of Davis. “He was here last year and he is going to be a good one. He listens and he’s picking things up. He was running down the ball and Colby [Rasmus] isn’t even doing that, he ran the ball down and caught it. Then he sidestepped a ball that he got but he should get there and set up.”

Davis was excited to be able to have White’s feedback and looks forward to utilizing the things he learned.

“Having former pros like Devon White helping you learn the game is unreal,” the centre fielder said. “I have had some good coaches to work with, at the [Ontario Blue Jays] and before that the Tigers, but you don’t get the kind of help that Devon White can offer to help you improve.

“Devon said I could be faster getting the ball in by setting up for the throw faster with some better footwork. He also pointed out that if you don’t have a good chance to get the runner at home, keep the baserunner from going to second or third.”

At the plate, Davis was hard on himself despite making consistent contact and providing Futures Navy with a solid leadoff hitter at all times. But Navy coach and former Team Canada legend Stubby Clapp was always available to help and did so in a big way for the young hitter.

“I had a tough game at the plate in our second game against BC,” Davis said. “While I was hitting in the cages before the next game, Stubby Clapp gave me a couple simple tips that made a big difference for me in the next game [and] I went 3-for-4.”

Garnering a lot of much-deserved attention after the inaugural event, Davis started to get some phone calls and emails from the occasional scout and recruiter about future opportunities. This year it grew.

“I got even more attention this year because I was able to show enough improvement to get people thinking, ‘If he improved this much in one year how much better might he be in a few years?’” Davis said. “I’m going to work on that even harder for next year. I quit hockey this year to focus on getting faster and stronger for next year.”

Maintaining and increasing his speed are big for Davis, and he is continuing to progress in the outfield.

“Speed is my No. 1 asset and I’m still working on everything else,” he said. “I’m still working on my speed too and trying to get everything better…My defense needs the most work but it’s come a long way in the last year. I wasn’t very good in centerfield but I’ve gotten a lot better. I put a lot of work into my defence and it’s something I still need to work on.”

Now that he’s risen to the top of several must-follow lists for his selection process almost three years from now, Davis is looking forward to making improvements and keeping himself right up top over time.

“[I’m] motivated,” he said. “It’s awesome to get that kind of feedback from playing a game I love from some of baseball’s best instructors and scouts. It will help me stay focused on working hard through the long winter ahead knowing I might have a chance to get to the next level.”

The immediate goal following Tournament 12 was for Davis to get a shot at playing for Team Canada, but a sprained ankle on the fall trip with the Ontario Blue Jays kept him from realizing it right away. Being only 15 years old, however, there is still plenty of time for that – and potentially a few more dreams – to come true.

“My No. 1 goal right now is to make the Junior National Team,” he said. “That’s the No. 1 goal in my mind. Obviously I just really want to represent my country and I think that’s one of the coolest things you can do and it’s a pretty special thing to be able to do.”