Member-only story
Bret Boone: Looking Back on Continuing a Family Baseball Legacy
The Boones have been an MLB institution for almost 75 years
The Boones are baseball family royalty with Ray, Bob, Aaron and Bret having played, and played at high levels, across three generations. The quartet combined for 5,890 hits and 634 home runs, providing indisputable statistical proof of their enormous impact on the game. Bret, who enjoyed a 14 year career as a second baseman from 1992–2005 was a star on both sides of the ball and more than did his part to uphold his family’s legacy.
Bret, the son of Bob and brother to Aaron (Ray is his grandfather) grew up in the game, as his father was in the midst of a 19-year major league career during his youth. With talent derived from genetics, hard work and the luxury of being exposed to big-league baseball from an early age, Boone attended the University of Southern California (USC), where he blossomed into a top prospect. He was drafted in the fifth round by the Seattle Mariners in 1990.
Boone made quick work of the minor leagues, earning a promotion to the majors in 1992. He was traded to the Cincinnati Reds following the 1993 season, but returned to Seattle later in his career; also playing for the Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres and Minnesota Twins along the way.
