Eric Davis, on Marge Schott

Eric Davis had some fairly critical comments about his time in Cincinnati, in a documentary being released this weekend. More accurately, the comments were critical of former owner Marge Schott. While some of this territory has been covered many times, I’ve never seen Davis address these things from his perspective to this degree:

Much was written after the World Series about the Reds flying home without Davis after sweeping the A’s, and Davis having to pay $15,000 for a special medical charter flight to Cincinnati.

“I had a lot of bitter feelings about Cincinnati,” he says. “For me to be the No. 1 guy, the face of the franchise, and to put my life on the line to help you win, it was kind of depressing. I held a grudge for a long time.”

Davis details how his slow recovery restricted his performance in 1991. He says he ignored doctors who told him the kidney needed 14-18 months to heal.

“In 1991, I shouldn’t have played at all,” says Davis, who hit only .235 in 89 games. “When I couldn’t even hit the ball out of the ball park in batting practice, that’s when I knew something was wrong.”

Davis says that when “Marge sent me to her private doctor, he didn’t examine me or do anything,” so he sought out another physician who said he “shouldn’t be playing.”

After meeting with Reds officials July 31, Davis was told he was being put on the disabled list for being “chronically tired.”

“They wanted to sugarcoat it. I was hurt – and that’s why they traded me the next season,” he said.

Read the entire piece; there’s much more.

For what it’s worth, nothing Davis say surprises me in the least, but it’s still a shame that one of the best players in Reds history has these memories about his time here. My memories of Davis are brighter: that young, skinny kid who could hit the ball a mile and run like the wind. Good grief, at his best, Davis was the most exciting player I’ve ever seen.