Former Astros scout right about Jeter

November 8, 8:01 PMHouston Astros ExaminerStephen Goff

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Hall of Famer Hal Newhouser dominated opposing hitters on the mound during the 1940s with the Detroit Tigers, but went on to become a great Major League Baseball scout, as evident with discovering Derek Jeter. (Photo courtesy of Baseball Hall of Fame)

Hall of Fame left-hander Hal Newhouser made a living dominating opponents on the mound for the Detroit Tigers during the 1940s.

Known as "Prince Hal," Newhouser's charming personality made him a fan favorite among Tiger fans, especially since he grew up a schoolboy star in his hometown of Detroit.

It wasn't all a positive experience early in his career as the young Newhouser struggled with control on the mound -- walking more batters than he struck out.

Eventually, Newhouser fulfilled his destiny by developing into the most dominant pitcher of his time.

He concluded his 17-year career posting a 207-150 record with a 3.06 ERA and 1,796 strikeouts, which earned him an induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., by the Veteran's Committee in 1992.

Although Newhouser passed away Nov. 10, 1998 at the age of 77, his legacy continues to touch the lives of his family, friends and fans.

"He was truly a gentleman," said Milwaukee Brewers manager Ken Macha, who is Newhouser's first cousin. "Hal followed my playing career and we grew close as my career went along. With our age difference, I always viewed him more as a uncle rather than a cousin."

Newhouser went from struggling pitcher to deadly force on the mound en route to being a seven-time All-Star and World Series champion in 1945. 

Everything just clicked.

He won a combined 80 games over a three-year period (1944-46), with a career-high 29 wins in 1944. More amazingly, Newhouser recorded 83 complete games during that timeframe, and logged over 300 innings during the 1944-45 seasons.

Newhouser became the only pitcher in history to win two straight AL MVP Awards (1944-45), yet critics questioned the validity of his accomplishments.

During World War II, Newhouser was classified as 4-F due to a leaky heart valve, and ended up being turned down repeatedly in his attempt to join the service. With most of Major League Baseball's perennial superstars fighting the war, sports writers believed Newhouser simply experienced success against weaker competition. 

However, when the boys returned home from war for the 1946 season, Newhouser silenced the critics by posting a 26-9 record with a 1.94 ERA. He tied a career-high 29 complete games and set another career high with 275 strikeouts.  

Newhouser remained one of the top pitchers in the game before experiencing arm trouble after the 1950 season. With his career going downhill, he decided to retire in 1955 with the Cleveland Indians.   

"What Hal did was truly amazing," Macha said. "I don't think any pitcher will ever duplicate his numbers from 1944 to 1946, especially winning back-to-back MVP Awards. No other pitcher has ever won consecutive MVP Awards. People underestimate how great of a pitcher he really was."

After retirement, Newhouser made a successful transition from Hall of Fame pitcher to working as a scout for the Baltimore Orioles, Indians, Tigers and Houston Astros. 

Newhouser had an eye for spotting talent, most notably signing a fellow Detroit high-schooler named Milt Pappas in 1957 while scouting for the Orioles. Pappas, a two-time All-Star right-hander, won 209 career games -- two more than Newhouser -- and tossed a no-hitter with the Chicago Cubs in 1972.

"Hal became close friends with Milt," Macha said. "They were both from Detroit and it meant a lot to him when Milt won his 208th game. Hal wanted Milt to be better than him."

In addition to signing Pappas and former standout pitcher Dean Chance, there was one particular high-school player in Kalamazoo, Mich., that captured Newhouser's attention in the early 1990s -- Derek Jeter.

He loved every aspect of Jeter's game, and was credited with discovering the 10-time All-Star shortstop and five-time World Series champion. 

When Jeter was in high school, Newhouser was the Michigan area scout for the Astros.

Newhouser would make an effort to drive over three hours from his home in Bluefield Hills, Mich., to Kalamazoo High School just to meet with Jeter and his family.

Jeter hit .557 as a sophomore, and .508 during both his junior and senior seasons. During the Spring of 1992, Newhouser at 71-years-old was a frequent spectator at Jeter's games.  

He strongly lobbied his supervisor, Dan O'Brien, and Astros owner John McMullen to select Jeter with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1992 First-Year Player Draft. The Hall of Fame pitcher proclaimed that Jeter had the talent to become one of the greatest players of all time. 

He was right -- yet none of the Astros' management was willing to listen. 

At the time, McMullen was unwilling to offer more than $700,000 to sign their first pick. Rumors began circulating that it would take $1 million to sign Jeter as the top overall pick, or else he would accept a scholarship to the University of Michigan. 

McMullen made it known he would never offer that kind of money to an unproven talent, and elected to take the safe bet by drafting Cal-State Fullerton outfielder Phil Nevin, who turned out to be a major bust in Houston.

Prior to the draft, O'Brien informed Newhouser of the organization's decision to go with Nevin, which prompted the Hall of Famer to quit his scouting job with the Astros. Newhouser told the front office that Jeter would have signed for $750,000, but nobody wanted to hear it. 

Ultimately, Jeter was drafted by the New York Yankees with the sixth overall pick, and the rest became history. 

"What can you say about Jeter other than he's one of the greatest ballplayers of all time," Macha added. "He plays the game the right way and is a perfect ambassador to the Yankee organization and New York fans."

Throughout professional sports, every franchise has made mistakes when drafting or not drafting certain players.

It's easy to look back, but in the Astros' case, maybe they would have been a perennial force in the National League, or possibly a World Series champion, with Jeter playing shortstop alongside teammates Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio.

You never know, but if the Astros had listened to Newhouser in the first place, Jeter would have initially worn an Astros uniform rather than Yankee pinstripes.

Over the years, Houston fans can pinpoint all the bizarre moves the Astros tend to make. In regard to Jeter, one can speculate that not drafting him might have been the greatest mistake in franchise history.