| Ted McGrew | |
|---|---|
| Born:(1880-06-24)June 24, 1880 Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | |
| Died: June 29, 1969(1969-06-29) (aged 89) Bedford, Virginia, U.S. | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
Harry Hancock "Ted" McGrew (June 24, 1880 – June 29, 1969) was an Americanprofessional baseballplayer,manager,umpire andscout. After aminor league playing and managing career, he umpired inMajor League Baseball (MLB) in 1930, 1931, 1933 and 1934. Later in his life, McGrew scouted for several MLB teams and was credited with discoveringPee Wee Reese andAlvin Dark.
McGrew was born inIndianapolis, Indiana, on June 24, 1880.[1] He was a minor league infielder (playing in his nativeMidwest) and manager before beginning his umpiring career.[2][3] By 1929, McGrew was umpiring in theAmerican Association and calling exhibition games for thePittsburgh Pirates.[4] He spent 1930 and 1931 umpiring in theNational League. He umpired in theInternational League in 1932.[5] McGrew returned to the majors in 1933 and was behind the plate whenDizzy Dean set a National League single-gamestrikeout record.[6] McGrew requested voluntary retirement in December of that year.[2]
In his later life, McGrew was a longtime major league scout. While with theBrooklyn Dodgers, he was responsible for the signing ofPee Wee Reese.[7] He also signedClaude Osteen,[8] who became a three-time All-Star with the Dodgers. McGrew was hired as the chief scout for thePhiladelphia Phillies in 1943.[9] He later scouted for theBoston Braves, where he signedAlvin Dark in 1946.[10] He was hired as chief scout for thePittsburgh Pirates in 1949; he supervised a scouting corps that includedLloyd Waner,Babe Herman andPie Traynor.[11] He joined the scouting staff of theBoston Red Sox the next year.[12]
While McGrew was a scout, Brooklyn playerBabe Dahlgren became surrounded by rumors of marijuana use which may have led to a series of trades involving Dahlgren. The rumors began with managerJoe McCarthy of the Yankees, who traded Dahlgren to Brooklyn in 1940. Before the 1943 season, Dodgers general managerBranch Rickey traded Dahlgren to Philadelphia. McGrew was present at a meeting where Rickey said he had traded Dahlgren due to marijuana use. McGrew was hired as the chief scout in Philadelphia later that year, and Philadelphia sent Dahlgren to Pittsburgh two months later.[13]
McGrew died inBedford, Virginia, on June 29, 1969.[14]