Batting average .258 Role Baseball player Home runs 14 Height 1.78 m | RBI 68 Weight 86 kg Name Brian Dayett Education Saint Leo University | |
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Brian Kelly Dayett (born January 22, 1957) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played five seasons between 1983 and 1987 for the New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs. He also spent some time in Japan, playing for the Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball from 1988 until 1991.
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Early life
Dayett was born in New London, Connecticut, grew up in Deep River, Connecticut and has a Little League Award named for him.
Before being drafted, he attended Saint Leo University.
Playing career
He was drafted by the Yankees in the 16th round (416th overall) in the 1978 amateur entry draft.
In 1978, his first year in the minors, Dayett hit 11 home runs in 68 games. In 1982 he hit 34 for the AA Nashville Sounds, winning the 1982 Southern League Most Valuable Player Award. That same year, he capped off the Sounds' Southern League championship with a walk-off homer to left-center field. In 1983, he hit 35 home runs and had 108 RBIs for the AAA Columbus Clippers of the International League.
He made his debut on September 11, 1983 at the age of 26, appearing as a pinch hitter for Omar Moreno. He collected a hit in his first at-bat. He ended up hitting .207 in his rookie season. On December 4, 1984, the Yankees traded Dayett with Ray Fontenot to the Chicago Cubs for Porfi Altamirano, Rich Bordi, Henry Cotto, and Ron Hassey.
Dayett was actually slated to be the Cubs starting right fielder for the 1987 season, but Andre Dawson, signed by the Cubs as a free agent, filled that position. This left Dayett to fill his normal reserve role, and he was not re-signed at the end of the season.
Overall in his career, he was mostly used as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. In 218 games, he hit 14 home runs and 26 doubles in 426 at-bats, with a .258 batting average. He committed only one error in his career for a .995 fielding percentage.
Coaching career
In 2002, he was a coach for the Michigan Battle Cats. In 2006, he was a coach for the Clinton LumberKings, and later served as the hitting coach for the Spokane Indians. Currently the roving hitting instructor for the Texas Rangers. He lives in Winchester, Tennessee with his wife and two sons. His parents and two sisters still reside in Connecticut.