Davis began umpiring in the minor leagues in 1976. He worked in the
Midwest League,
Eastern League and
American Association before being promoted to the majors in 1982. He has officiated in 22 postseasons, including the
World Series in
1996,
1999,
2004,
2009 2012 and
2017, the
League Championship Series in
1990,
1992,
1995,
1998,
2000,
2001,
2005,
2010,
2013,
2014, and
2018; the
Division Series in
1996,
1999,
2002,
2003,
2004,
2006,
2007,
2008,
2009,
2011,
2012, and
2015; and the
Wild Card Game in
2013,
2014 and
2018. He also umpired the
All-Star Game in
1989,
1997,
2002 and
2012; he called balls and strikes on the last two occasions. Davis opted out of the 2020 season due to concerns from the coronavirus pandemic. He umpired his last game on October 3, 2021, in St. Louis. Davis holds the record for the most postseason games officiated in MLB.
Notable games Davis was the second base umpire for the
perfect game pitched by
Randy Johnson on May 18, 2004. On September 19, 2008, at
Tropicana Field, instant replay overturned a call on the field for the first time ever in the major leagues. A fly ball hit by
Tampa Bay Rays' first baseman
Carlos Peña, the umpires ruled, was interfered with by a fan sitting in the front row of the stands, when the ball hit the hands of the fan and fell back onto the field of play. After
Joe Maddon requested the umpires hold a conference to discuss the play, the umpires, headed by Gerry Davis, decided to look at instant replay. Just over four minutes later, Davis returned to the field and signaled that the ball was a home run. Davis was the home plate umpire for the last game played at
Shea Stadium on September 28, 2008. With his assignment to the
2012 World Series, Davis set an officiating record for most postseason games umpired in major league history with 115 and since then this mark has moved forward to 151 games. On April 23, 2014, Davis ejected
New York Yankees starting pitcher
Michael Pineda for having pine tar on his neck. On July 26, 2017, Davis asked
Texas Rangers third baseman
Adrián Beltré to move closer to the on-deck circle. After Beltré jokingly moved the on-deck batting circle, Davis ejected him. ==Personal life==