PHOENIX — Matt Davidson and David Holmberg talked about the good old days after both made their return to Chase Field in Monday’s loss.
The two current White Sox players both made their major league debuts for the Arizona Diamondbacks in August 2013. They took time to reflect on that after each appeared in Monday night’s 5-1 White Sox loss. Davidson grounded into a double play while Holmberg pitched a scoreless inning.
“It’s been a lot,” Davidson said. “It seems like forever ago, it really does. I guess it was four years now. A lot of good memories here, and I can’t thank them enough for everything they taught me.”
An original White Sox draft pick in 2009, Holmberg was traded by the White Sox with Daniel Hudson in exchange for Edwin Jackson in July 2010. He and Davidson grew up together in the Diamondbacks farm system. Holmberg remembers how the club let their minor leaguers play a game at Chase Field and he immediately loved the venue. Many of those memories have come flooding back over the past two days.
“It was cool,” Holmberg said. “I made my debut here. I’ve always liked Chase Field. It was the place where I wanted to play.”
As it turned out, Holmberg got only one opportunity to pitch here for Arizona. He was included in a deal that sent Heath Bell out of town in December. Davidson also had a similar limited run with the Diamondbacks. He debuted on Aug. 11 and hit three home runs in 87 plate appearances. That offseason, Davidson was traded to the White Sox in exchange for Addison Reed.
A starter his entire career, including 32 at Triple-A Charlotte last season, Holmberg is adjusting to his new role in the bullpen. He’s fared well so far with a 1.76 ERA at Charlotte and having allowed one run in 8 1/3 innings for the White Sox.
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“It’s definitely different than starting, but it’s the same concept,” Holmberg said. “Keep the ball down in the zone, get outs and move on.”
Though he’s moved on professionally, Davidson is still nostalgic about his time in Arizona. He and Holmberg talked about some of their former teammates — Diamondbacks infielder Chris Owings was Davidson’s last roommate. Davidson also went to high school Arizona starting pitcher Taijuan Walker, who was scheduled to start Wednesday, but will miss it after he was placed on the disabled list.
“It’s pretty cool,” Davidson said. “This was my favorite team growing up, and my first major-league game I ever went to. It seemed a lot bigger the first time I played here in my debut. It seems like it shrunk a little bit since my first time up. It was a pretty cool experience. I’m really excited to be back here and grew up here and went through the minor leagues and everything. It’s really cool.”