Dick Groch, a longtime baseball scout who convinced the New York Yankees to draft franchise cornerstone Derek Jeter, has passed away at the age of 84.
Before the do-or-die Game 3 of the American League Wild Card series against the rival Boston Red Sox, the Yankees held a moment of silence for Groch.
Jeter paid tribute to the man who helped the Yankees select him. In New York, Jeter would win multiple World Series titles and would become a Hall-of-Famer.
‘RIP Dick Groch. My Yankees scout who believed in me and signed me. Thoughts and prayers are with your family and loved ones,’ Jeter posted to X.
Groch spent years working as a scout for the Yankees before later taking a job as the special assistant to the general manager for the Milwaukee Brewers.
He played a crucial role in swaying scouting director Bill Livesey to select Jeter with the sixth overall pick in the 1992 amateur draft.
Dick Groch (L), the scout that convinced the Yankees to draft Derek Jeter (R), has died at 84.
Groch was convinced that the Yankees could keep Jeter from playing at Michigan for college
Jeter went on to win multiple Gold Gloves and Silver Sluggers, while taking home five World Series titles and becoming a nearly-unanimous Hall-of-Famer on the first ballot
At the time, Jeter had committed to playing baseball at the University of Michigan – which dissuaded others from picking him.
As the legend says, Groch told his bosses, ‘He’s not going to the University of Michigan. The only place Derek Jeter is going is Cooperstown.’
Groch graded Jeter as a 64 on the 20-80 scouting scale, meaning he expected Jeter to turn into a star.
What a star he became. Jeter amassed 3,465 hits and 260 home runs while slashing a career .310/.377/.440.
As for awards, Jeter would win five Gold Gloves, five Silver Sluggers, was named to the All-Star team 14 times, and won 1996 AL Rookie of the Year.
He also won five World Series titles – taking home the MVP of the championship series in 2000.
Jeter was voted into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot – falling just one vote short of being unanimous.