Remembering Long Time Mets Scout: Harry Minor (1967-2011)

Harry Minor was born in 1927 at Long Beach California. Minor was signed out of high school by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1947. Minor would play outfield, first base, catcher & even pitch 22 games in a 12 year minor league career. He reached AAA in 1950 with the Buffalo Bisons, his only year at that level. He spent the next two years in military service returning to the minor leagues by 1953. He would play until the 1960 season, serving as a player manager from 1958-1960. Overall he would hit .283 with 154 career minor league HRs.  

Minor soon became a scout, working in the Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves for six years 1961-1967. It was minor who actually signed Tom Seaver out of USC, for the Braves. The deal was made when Seaver was technically still a college student, therefore not making him eligible. The deal was voided by Commissioner Eckert & a lottery was held in which the Mets won, by picking Seaver's name out of a hat.

Minor then joined the Mets organization in 1967, he would stay with the team for the next 43 years. He even managed the Visalia Mets in the California League in the teams Championship season of 1969. That team featured future Met John Milner & future Mets hitting coach Tom Robson.

He would have some kind of input in signing many players on the Mets next Championship of 1986 as well, including Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Lenny Dykstra, Mookie Wilson, Wally Backman, Gregg Jefferies, Hubie Brooks, Kevin Mitchell & Kevin Elster.

Quotes: "I'll always remember the championships. We had some great fun building up the organization, and those World Series teams were built on a foundation of talent the Mets developed."

Minor retired in 2011 after 65 years in baseball. His two sons also scouted, one for the Mets & Arizona Diamondbacks the other in Pittsburgh with over 30 years for the Pirates.

In 1997 he won the Scout of the Year Award & was the first scout inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame (2013). That year as Mike Piazza was inducted he received the Mets Hall of Fame Achievement Award.  He passed away in January of 2017 at age 88.