Former MLB pitcher, longtime scout Jeff Bittiger dies at 63

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Former major league pitcher Jeff Bittiger, a scout for 22 years with the Athletics, died on Saturday morning, the team announced. He was 63.

The organization did not disclose the cause of death. The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, a pro independent league franchise for whom Bittiger was a longtime pitcher, coach and front office staffer, announced later Saturday that he died at his home in Pennsylvania “after a private battle with cancer.”

“Bitt will be remembered for his determination on and off the field, his love for the game of baseball and the countless players he coached and helped to greater career success,” the North Dakota-based RedHawks said in a statement.

“He’s been battling cancer privately for years,” Bittiger’s son Brett told The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. “He didn’t stop working until this spring, which is very much on brand for him. … He cared about being great.”

Bittiger was already scheduled to be inducted into the American Association Professional Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday in Fargo as part of the league’s All-Star Game festivities.

A native of Jersey City, N.J., Bittiger was selected by the New York Mets in the seventh round of the 1980 MLB Draft out of Secaucus (N.J.) High School.

The right-hander made his major league debut in September 1986 with the Philadelphia Phillies and concluded his MLB career in May 1989 with the Chicago White Sox.

His career record was 4-6 with a 4.77 ERA, 42 walks and 53 strikeouts in 33 games (12 starts) for the Phillies (1986), Minnesota Twins (1987) and White Sox (1988-89).

“Jeff spent his whole life around the game: playing, coaching, and scouting,” Billy Beane, a senior advisor to Athletics owner John Fisher and the team’s former general manager, said in a statement. “He was as good a person as he was a scout, and he was a hell of a scout. He knew pitchers inside and out and you could tell how much he loved baseball just by being around him. We’re all better for having been lucky enough to spend time with him at a game or in the draft room.”

The Athletics said he played independent baseball until age 40. He was a scout for the organization for 22 years.

“As an area scout, he signed (2009 American League) Rookie of the Year Andrew Bailey, and he was a critical voice in many trade acquisitions over the last 10 years as a member of our Professional Scouting staff,” the Athletics said in a statement. “Thank you, Jeff, for your dedication not only to the A’s organization, but to the game of baseball.”

–Field Level Media