Former Arizona star outfielder Chase Davis has been selected by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 21st overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft on Sunday afternoon. With the pick, Davis became the 13th Wildcat to be drafted in the first round.

Coming to Tucson in 2021, under then-coach Jay Johnson, Davis didn’t see much time on the field, competing in only 30 at-bats and starting in one game. He finished the season with a .233 batting average with a .400 slugging percentage.

Despite having to learn a new system the following year when Arizona hired coach Chip Hale, Davis, who entered his first year in the starting lineup, showed no signs of slowing down and instead proved his worth in every at-bat, earning himself a Pac-12 All Conference Honorable Mention. He also illustrated that he was capable of showing up in a large way when it mattered most, clobbering a walk-off home run against in-state rival Arizona State.

Davis could have forwent his junior season and could have entered the MLB as a mid-round selection, but instead decided, he had more ground to cover in Tucson.

This decision was ultimately the best one for the California native, who rose his stock to a first round pick in nearly every mock draft after a junior season that saw him average a .362 batting average, 80 hits, 74 RBIs and a .742 slugging percentage.

Davis received many accolades such as D1 Baseball Second Team All-American and the Pac-12 Baseball Tournament MVP. However, the 21-year-old has made it clear from the beginning of last season that he is first and foremost about the team — a facet of his game that he will bring to St. Louis.

“The recognition is really cool, but at the end of the day, I’m still playing college baseball. …Day in and day out, baseball, baseball, baseball until further notice,” Davis said during the Arizona Media Day.

Falling to Santa Clara in the Fayetteville Regional and ending Davis’ last season with the Wildcats, Davis showed MLB scouts his humility, recognizing all of the hard work that he and his team have worked through to make their infamous Cinderella run to the postseason.

“(It’s) just baseball,” Davis said. “We played hard and the chips didn’t fall our way. But we left it all out there, and at the end of the day, that is all that we are proud about.”

The MLB Draft will go on for the next two days. After that, Davis is expected to begin his big league journey at the rookie ball level.

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