Joe Devine (scout)
Joe Devine was a former baseball scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Yankees. He is credited for signing Joe DiMaggio to the Yankees.[1]
Baseball career
Devine was an outfielder in the minor leagues.[1] He was on the 1917 Boston Red Sox spring training roster but never advanced to the Major Leagues.[2] He managed a local baseball team in Seattle during World War I.[1] He scouted with Seattle Rainiers and managed a baseball team in Calgary before joining the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. After the Pirates he managed the Mission Reds of San Francisco.[1] By 1932 he was hired by Paul Krichell to be the New York Yankees chief scout on the West Coast.[1] He also signed Jerry Coleman, Fenton Mole, Johnny Lindell, Cliff Mapes, Charlie Silvera,[3] and Leo Righetti.[4]
Scouting Style
Devine scouting style is similar to Krichell's. He not only looks for ability, he also checks a players personality and character to see if they could handle the pressure of playing for the Yankees.[3] He also looks for size; he only signed two players that were under six feet.[3]
