Daryl Boston

Daryl Lamont Boston

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 3", Weight 203 lb.
• High School Woodward High School (Cincinnati)
• Debut May 13, 1984
• Final Game August 11, 1994
• Born January 4, 1963 in Cincinnati, OH USA

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Biographical Information

Daryl Boston was an outfielder with an eleven-year career who broke into the major leagues at the age of 21.

Born in Cincinnati, he was signed at age 18 by the Chicago White Sox and scout Bruce Dal Canton as a first round pick in the 1981 amateur draft. He played in the rookie league that summer, hitting .291, and in 1982 he was in Single A, hitting .279 with 15 home runs. In 1983, he hit only .239 in Double A, but was moved up to Triple A for 14 games. In 1984, he impressed in Triple A with a .312 average, 19 triples, 15 home runs, and 40 stolen bases.

His Triple A performance earned him a shot in the big leagues in 1984, and he came up for 35 games, hitting .169. The next year, 1985, Boston was in the minors for 63 games but in the majors for 95 games, hitting .228 with the White Sox. In 1986, he spent most of his time in the minors, hitting .303 in 96 games in Triple A, but had his best performance to date in the majors, hitting .266 in 56 games. Boston put in 21 games in Triple A in 1987, hitting .299, and finally stuck in the big leagues, playing 103 games with the White Sox that year. He hit 10 home runs and stole 12 bases. In 1988, he had a personal high with 15 home runs, but batted only .217. In 1989, getting fewer at-bats, he hit 5 home runs with a .252 average.

In 1990, Boston appeared in only 5 games with the White Sox before they put him on waivers, and the New York Mets picked him up. He hit .273 for them the rest of 1990, with 12 home runs and 18 stolen bases. He became a role player in 1991, appearing in 137 games but getting only 255 at-bats and hitting .275. In 1992, he hit .249 with 11 home runs and was granted free agency. The Colorado Rockies picked him up, and in 1993 he hit .261 with 14 home runs in their inaugural season. In 1994, he played for the New York Yankees, appearing in 52 games with 77 at-bats, and hitting .182 as the team won the division in the strike-interrupted season. Boston finished his playing career in 1996 with the Regina Cyclones in the independent Prairie League. He got an early start on a coaching career when he served as a player/manager from August 7th through the end of the season.

Many people expected that Boston, as a first-round draft pick with considerable talent, would develop into a major league star. It was not to be. An interesting comparison is Darrin Jackson, a contemporary of Boston who also played the outfield for the White Sox for a while, and who is one of the most similar players to Boston based on similarity scores.

After retiring as a player, Boston became a minor league coach in the White Sox organization. He was hitting coach with the Bristol White Sox in 1998, the Burlington Bees in 1999, and the Winston-Salem Warthogs in 2000. The White Sox moved Boston to minor league outfield instructor in 2001 and then added baserunning responsibilities in 2002. From 2003-2011 he coached outfielders throughout the system before adding baserunning to his duties once again in 2012.

Boston returned to the major leagues in 2013 as first base coach of the White Sox. He remained in this position through 2023. After the latter season the White Sox released Boston amidst a shake-up of the team's coaching staff.

His brother, D.J. Boston, played in the minor leagues for several seasons.