Card Spotlight: 4-9-10

2005 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites #138 - Daryl Boston

I suppose I had better get this done quick before my internet goes out again. I wouldn't necessarily call Daryl Boston a "fan favorite", but he did capture my attention on a few occasions.

When I was a kid, I used to absorb the backs of baseball cards like a sponge. I would pay attention to the game itself and pick up little tiny nuances in each game. I was able to see past the players and focus on what was actually happening. No biases or home team slant entered my mind. I still wanted to see the White Sox win, but I was almost Steve Stone-like in how I was able to call a game. I wanted to be a broadcaster for a very short period of time in my youth.

Late in 1986, I was attending a game at Comiskey Park with my dad. He didn't really care for sports too much, but he gradually came to like baseball. He would listen to me drone on and on about this player or that player for hours on end.

In the late innings, I mentioned to my dad that John Cangelosi would get on base. Then, he would attempt to steal second and advance to third when Daryl Boston hit the ball in a certain area. The little details are fuzzy, considering that this over twenty years ago.

My dad listened to me and nodded. Then he watched exactly what I had said play out before his eyes. He sat in amazement for a minute. He never lets me forget about that moment. He has believed everything I've had to say about baseball ever since.

Daryl hung on with the White Sox until early 1990, when he was selected by the New York Mets off of waivers. I watched Daryl as he moved up in the organization. I was too young to remember when he was drafted in 1981, since I didn't start watching baseball until 1982. I do remember his appearances in 1984 and of course after that.

I always thought Daryl and John Cangelosi made a great back to back pair. Unfortunately, Tony LaRussa was fired, Doug Rader was only around for two games and I'm not sure if Jim Fregosi really knew what to do with the team. Opportunities may have been lost then, but I have some great memories to recall.