Jack Daugherty

John Michael Daugherty

• Bats Both, Throws Left
• Height 6' 0", Weight 195 lb.
• School San Diego Mesa College, University of Arizona
• High School Kearny High School (San Diego)
• Debut September 1, 1987
• Final Game October 3, 1993
• Born July 3, 1960 in Hialeah, FL USA

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Biographical Information

Jack Daugherty was not drafted after college and was signed by the Oakland Athletics as an amateur free agent in October of 1982. However, he stood pretty low in the organization's depth chart, and was sent to play the 1983 season with an unaffiliated team, the San Jose Bees of the California League. He hit .261 in 116 games but was released after the season, then in 1984 had to find a job with another unaffiliated team. This time, he hit a sparkling .402 with 26 doubles and 15 homers in 66 games for the Helena Gold Sox of the Pioneer League, scoring 77 runs and driving in 82. Even though he was 23 with experience of a big-time college program in a Rookie-level league, that sort of production caught the eye of scouts, and after the season he signed a contract with the Montreal Expos.

Daugherty hit over .310 in each of his first three seasons in the Expos' system, playing first base for the West Palm Beach Expos in 1985, where he was named the Florida State League MVP, the Jacksonville Expos in 1986, and the AAA Indianapolis Indians in 1987. The Expos brought him up in September of 1987 to serve as a pinch-hitter during the pennant race. He went 1 for 10 in 11 games. He collected an RBI on a ground ball in his first major league appearance on September 1st, and his first hit was a double off Greg Maddux of the Chicago Cubs on October 2nd. He was back at Indianapolis in 1988, but was down to .285, with 33 doubles but only 6 homers (a line drive hitter, he only reached 10 homers once in the minors, apart from his stellar season in the Pioneer League). In September of that year, he was sent to the Texas Rangers as the player to be named later in an earlier deal for veteran infielder Tom O'Malley, but was not brought up to the majors. He started 1989 with the AAA Oklahoma City 89ers, where he hit .251 in 82 games. Even though it was by far the weakest year with the bat of his career, he was called up by the Rangers in early July and managed to stay on their roster for the rest of the season. He hit .302 in 52 games, with a .364 OBP, to show that he could produce as a back-up in the big leagues. He was already 28 by that point.

Jack played a career-high 125 games for the Rangers in 1990, hitting .300 in 310 at-bats, with 20 doubles and 6 homers. It would be his only professional season without any time spent in the minor leagues. He drove in 47 runs while splitting his time between left field, first base and the DH spot. His playing time went down significantly in 1991 and 1992, as he got into 58 and 59 games respectively. His biggest quality, being able to hit for a high average, seemed to have disappeared, as he batted a woeful .194 in 1991, and barely improved to .205 the next year. He played for short stints in Oklahoma City both years.

Daugherty became a free agent after the 1992 season and signed with the Houston Astros. He went 1 for 3 in 4 games for the Astros in 1993, spending most of his time with the AAA Tucson Toros, where he hit a whopping .390 in 42 games. The Cincinnati Reds took notice and acquired him in a trade on July 12th, in return for Steve Carter. In his first nine at-bats as a member of the Reds, he collected six hits with two homers and six RBI. He finished the season with them, playing in 46 games, but hit only .220 with no more homers homers and only 3 more RBI after his fast start. He played his last major league game on October 3rd. In 6 seasons in the Show, he had hit .256 in 355 games, with 39 doubles, 6 triples and 10 homers. He had shown good speed in the minors, stealing as many as 33 bases with West Palm Beach in 1985, but his speed was pretty much gone by the time he made it to the majors, as he only stole 5 bases for his career.

Jack finished his career with a couple more seasons in AAA, hitting .336 in 47 games for the Syracuse Chiefs in 1994, and .152 in only 10 games for the Phoenix Firebirds in 1995. He then spent the 1996 season in Japan with the Chiba Lotte Marines, going 5 for 42 with two doubles before being released.

Notable Achievements

• 1984 Player of the Year Pioneer League Helena Gold Sox
• 1985 MVP Florida State League West Palm Beach Expos