OAKLAND -- Khris Davis wanted an autograph for himself. And Anthony Slocumb was just beside himself to make it happen for his favorite baseball player.
The newfound friends swapped blue ink, then Davis, still sporting it on the back of his jersey in game action against the Rangers on Monday night, went out and hit a moonshot of a home run in the A's resounding 9-0 victory.
Slocumb, visiting the Coliseum with a group from the Make-A-Wish Foundation's Greater Bay Area chapter, watched on. The 10-year-old is in remission from a rare cancer called Langerhans cell histiocytosis.

"There was a lot of emotion," Davis said. "I just wanted to put a smile on his face and thought maybe it would mean something if I had my jersey signed by him, just to know what that feels like to be in my shoes for a split second.
"I thought about him around the bases. There's not a better feeling than hitting a home run, so hopefully he got some excitement and joy from watching that."

Slocumb was among a dozen Make-A-Wish kids hosted by the A's, who facilitated the visit with Davis prior to the game and allowed them to take the field with the players for the national anthem.

Davis, buoyed by the short but sweet encounter, carried Slocumb with him into the night. A wardrobe change was out of the question.
"I wanted to rock that," he said. "I wanted him to know that I was thinking about him."