Former big league infielder Bret Boone was hired Monday as the hitting coach for the Texas Rangers, who are last in the American League in runs scored.
It will be the first time Boone, the older brother of New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone, is on a major league coaching staff. Bret Boone, 56, will join the Rangers on Tuesday for the opener of their three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
Boone’s hiring came a day after Texas fired offensive coordinator Donnie Ecker.
In 14 big league seasons as player, Boone was a three-time All-Star and hit .266 with 252 homers and 1,021 RBIs in 1,780 games from 1992-2005 for five teams: the Seattle Mariners, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres and Minnesota Twins. His only season with the Padres was in 2000, when his manager was current Rangers skipper Bruce Bochy. He hit .251 with 19 home runs and 74 RBIs that season.
Texas (17-18) had a day off Monday after an 8-1 win at home in its series finale against AL West-leading Seattle on Sunday. Even with that outburst, the Rangers were last in the AL with 113 runs. They lost 13-1 and 2-1 in the first two games of that series.
Before the win over the Mariners, the Rangers had scored just 30 runs during a 2-9 stretch, and half of those came when they finished with a season-high 15 runs against Oakland on Tuesday. They opened the series against Seattle with losses of 13-1 and 2-1.
Boone retired as a player while with Triple-A Columbus in the Washington Nationals system in 2008. He had since been involved in several business ventures, most recently a podcast focused on baseball topics. He was a roving instructor and scout in the Athletics organization in 2014-15.
Ecker, 39, was in his fourth season as the club’s offensive coordinator after being hired on Nov. 1, 2021. He helped the Rangers win their only World Series title in 2023.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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