From Dodger Insider magazine: Joe Davis — That now familiar voice
Editor’s note: This story appears in the current edition of Dodger Insider magazine, available at parking stands at Dodger Stadium this homestand while supplies last.
by Mark Langill
The former new kid on the broadcasting block has a bobblehead night in 2025 that coincides with his first decade with the Dodgers.
Unlike his figurine, the head on the real Joe Davis moves from side to side when pondering the passage of time. Davis joined the Dodger broadcasting team in 2016. He became the primary play-by-play voice in 2017, alongside former pitcher Orel Hershiser, when Hall of Famer Vin Scully retired after 67 seasons.
Unlike Scully, the Fordham University graduate who started in the Major Leagues as a №3 Brooklyn broadcaster with Red Barber and Connie Desmond, Davis worked his way up the ladder after his 2010 graduation from Beloit College in Wisconsin. His Minor League Baseball gigs included the Schaumburg (IL) Flyers and Montgomery (AL) Biscuits, along with football, basketball and hockey games.
“I think it’s exceeded expectations,” Davis says of his initial hopes in Los Angeles. “I couldn’t have wished it to go this great. In the beginning, I was hoping to do a good enough job where they would let me hang around and people would learn to like me. I knew it wasn’t going to happen right away. They had nothing but the greatest announcer ever to do the job for as long as the team had been in L.A. So, I was hoping over time they could appreciate what I was doing.” Ten consecutive trips to the postseason (extending the franchise’s streak since 2013), four World Series appearances and two World Series championships later, Davis is caught up in another race as Los Angeles looks to defend its 2024 title.
“When I look back and see 10 years, it’s mind-blowing to me,” he says. “I’m very proud of it. The other thing I couldn’t have anticipated being so special is that connection you develop with the fan base when it’s an everyday sport like baseball. You become part of people’s lives. They welcome you into their living rooms each day, turning on Dodger baseball.”
Davis, when reflecting on what he has learned the most about himself, borrows a page from his predecessor’s playbook.
“I think being me is enough,” he says. “And I don’t think that says anything special about me. That’s the advice that Vin gave to me. You can listen to other people and take things that you like and apply them to yourself. But don’t lose yourself in it. Allow yourself to come through.”
Scully and Davis had their own signature moments under similar circumstances 36 years apart — a walk-off home run in Game 1 of the World Series. Freddie Freeman’s 2024 grand slam against the New York Yankees echoed memories of Kirk Gibson’s heroics in 1988 as a pinch-hitter battling knee and hamstring injuries against Oakland Athletics closer and future Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley.
Scully’s call: “In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened.”
Davis: “Gibby, meet Freddie!”
And like Scully, the low-profile exterior and smooth on-air delivery by Davis belies his exhaustive preparation with the caveat that research is merely the spice to the unfolding story on the field.
“His work ethic, attention to detail and ability to rise to the big moment really makes the viewer feel all the emotion,” says Mike Levy, executive producer of Dodger broadcasts on SportsNet LA. “Joe has a tremendous feel for all the emotions that go along with watching a baseball game.
“His personality is equally as unique. A caring, gregarious, loving husband, dad and friend who loves with all his heart, and then when it’s game time and the lights turn on, he becomes focused and determined on the game and broadcast.”
Davis has had a partner in all of this — one he remembers “meeting” as a kid while playing the video game Tommy Lasorda Baseball on Sega Genesis.
“I thought, ‘What is an Orel Hershiser?’ “Davis says.
When their paths finally crossed decades later, the former pitcher brought more than an 18-year career into the broadcasting booth after his retirement as an active player, including World Series MVP honors and an MLB-record streak of 59 scoreless innings during his Cy Young Award season in 1988.
Hershiser offered friendship.
“Everyone already knew who I was,” Hershiser says. “It was important to make sure Joe was popular. I could tell right away he was very smart and a hard worker.”
They bonded over backyard barbeque techniques and enjoyed restaurant explorations on road trips. They laughed at one another’s corny jokes on the air.
Hershiser’s encyclopedic knowledge of Dodger history and the various personalities of players, coaches and Lasorda painted a picture for Davis in terms of understanding the franchise culture and traditions. When Davis emceed Hershiser’s Legends of Dodger Baseball ceremony in 2023, it was an emotional night for both men.
“From the first day I got here, Orel put his arm around me, figuratively and literally,” Davis says. “Everything I said from the start, he validated with the way he responded. Even when I said things that I’m sure weren’t correct or didn’t make a lot of sense, he would make sure it got his rubber stamp of approval. I think when Orel Hershiser is giving his approval, it makes it easier for the fans to say, ‘OK, maybe this kid is all right.’ So, he is as responsible as any person there is for it going as well as it has.”
Davis also credits his wife, Libby, who faithfully sat in the grandstands in various Minor League ballparks while he pursued his dream behind the microphone. The couple now has three children: daughter Charlotte (9), sons Blake (6) and Theo (4).
If the latest member of the family soon discovers a vintage baseball card or video game featuring his father’s friend, there will be something wonderfully familiar about the moniker.
The full name of Joe’s youngest son is Theodore Orel Davis.
From Dodger Insider magazine: Joe Davis — That now familiar voice was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.