Former Yankees Scout Dick Groch Dies at 84, Honored by Derek Jeter After Signing HOFer

Dick Groch, who is best known as the scout who helped convince the New York Yankees to select Derek Jeter with the No. 6 pick of the 1992 MLB draft, died Wednesday at the age of 84.

The Yankees held a moment of silence ahead of Thursday’s American League Wild Card Series Game 3 against the Boston Red Sox:

Jeter also honored the scout who famously said of the Yankees legend, “He’s not going to the University of Michigan; the only place Derek Jeter is going is Cooperstown.”

Bryan Hoch and Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reported on Groch’s life and noted he was a four-time First-Team NAIA basketball selection at Olivet College before he began a coaching and teaching career at St. Clair Community College. His baseball teams made three appearances in the Junior College World Series and produced more than 40 professional players.

Groch then became a scout for the Montreal Expos before taking the same role on the Yankees. 

His most famous accomplishment came when he traveled around Michigan to track Jeter at Kalamazoo Central High and convinced the Yankees to select him.

“It’s the difference between going to the Kentucky Derby and the state fair,” Groch once said of Jeter. “When you see Secretariat, it takes your breath away.”

His instincts were right, as Jeter ended up becoming a generational player who was elected to the Hall of Fame after a career that included five World Series titles, five Gold Gloves, five Silver Sluggers, a Rookie of the Year, a World Series MVP and 14 All-Star Game selections.

Groch then joined the Milwaukee Brewers in 2002 and was listed in the team’s staff director as late as 2021.

He is survived by his wife, Nancy, as well as his three children and nine grandchildren.

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