Meet the scout who fibbed about José Altuve’s height
The scouting report, like a thousand others in the history of the game, was straightforward and succinct:
“A batter with the ability to get to the major leagues in five years. Capable of averaging between .270 and .290. A line-drive hitter without much power. Must work on his defense.”
There was no mention of his height. Nor of the size of his heart, for that matter. And that’s how Alfredo “Al” Pedrique — recalling from memory his original evaluation written in the winter of 2006-07 — convinced the Houston Astros to sign 5-foot-6 José Altuve of Puerto Cabello, Venezuela.
“I should’ve kept that scouting report,” said Pedrique, who at the time was the Astros’ Latin American coordinator. “But he surpassed all our expectations.
“More than his hitting and speed, what I most liked about him was his intelligence and heart, and his drive and absolute faith in himself.”
Pedrique, 57, is a former infielder whose long, varied career in baseball includes being the second Venezuelan to manage in the major leagues. He skippered the Arizona Diamondbacks on an interim basis for 83 games in 2004, the same season Ozzie Guillén took over the Chicago White Sox. From the Astros, Pedrique moved on to managing in the Yankees’ minor league organization. He is now in his first season as the Oakland A’s first base coach.
As for Altuve, well, he has surpassed everyone’s expectations and become a true giant in the game. So good that the Astros rewarded him with a five-year contract extension that will pay him an additional $151 million through 2024.
Andrés Reiner’s tenets
It’s easy to surmise that Altuve, the 2017 AL MVP and three-time batting champ, is a product of the club’s high-tech operation. After all, the Astros are one of the best teams at compiling metrics and applying analytics.
But back then, general manager Jeff Luhnow was working in the St. Louis Cardinals’ scouting department. Pedrique simply used time-honed, old-school techniques when he trusted his instincts and recommended Altuve. He drew on the teachings of the late Andrés Reiner, the legendary major league scout from Venezuela who discovered stars like Bobby Abreu and Johan Santana and founded the country’s first baseball academy.
“I think that Altuve’s signing was made possible because we applied the same tenets taught to us by Andrés Reiner — to never exclude anyone at first glance,” said Pedrique.
“Some organizations didn’t think highly of Altuve because of his height,” he added. “But when we scouted him, we allowed him to keep playing in our academy. We kept liking what we saw, and we signed him.”
The man who actually discovered Altuve was the late scout Wolfgang Ramos, who pointed him out to Pablo Torrealba, the Astros’ Venezuelan coordinator, who in turned informed Omar López, who at the time managed the Astros’ Venezuelan summer league team. Their initial reports prompted Pedrique to make the trip to Venezuela and take a look himself.
Fudging Altuve’s height
It was love at first sight. Pedrique recalled telling Ramos, “Don’t lose that enano [runt]. No matter what, we got to sign him.”
Pedrique admitted that he fudged Altuve’s height in the scouting report to avoid any pushback from the front office.
“We wrote 5-foot-7 to ensure it got approved,” Pedrique said.
“When I handed the scouting report to [then] general manager Tim Purpura, he asked me, ‘Al, is this guy who is 5-7 the same guy who was 5-4 two weeks ago?’”
“I personally knew that it would be worth it,” Pedrique added. “I never thought that José would go this far, but I knew that he would become a major leaguer.”
Due to budgetary constraints, the Astros’ almost lost Altuve. Their offer was for only $15,000. Altuve’s father Carlos wasn’t happy at all with the amount. But Altuve, displaying his trademark confidence, overrode his father’s concerns and signed on Mar. 6, 2007.
“It’s all right, Dad,” said Altuve, according to Pedrique. “I’m going to sign for this amount. All I want is the opportunity to play. I’ll take care of the rest.”
In his first season in the now-defunct Venezuelan summer league, Altuve hit .343/.429/.441 with 12 doubles, 36 RBIs and 15 stolen bases. Pedrique said that Altuve opened eyes all the way back to Houston.
“Initially we thought that because of his height, he would have difficulty getting promoted,” Pedrique said.
“When a player isn’t considered a prospect, he must pave his own way. And that’s what Altuve did.”
The Astros promoted Altuve slowly and deliberately, from rookie league through Double-A. When he hit .408 at high Single-A and .361 in Double-A in the early summer of 2011, the Astros brought him up to The Show, one year ahead of Pedrique’s prediction. In his debut on July 20, Altuve got a hit on his fifth and last at-bat, a sharp single to right field. The rest, as we all know, is history.
Altuve’s gift
There’s a postscript to the story. In December 2015 — the winter after Altuve collected 200 hits for the second straight season — Pedrique sat in the manager’s office in the visitors’ clubhouse at José Pérez Colmenares Stadium in Maracay, Venezuela, filling out the lineup for a game between his team, Leones de Caracas, and Tigres de Aragua.
There was a knock on the door. The security guard leaned in.
“Mr. Perique, José Altuve is outside asking for you. Do I let him in?” the guard asked.
“I said, ‘How the heck can you not let Altuve in?’” Pedrique recalled with a chuckle.
Altuve entered the room with a new glove, embroidered with the Venezuelan flag and his name.
“Señor Alfredo, I’m here to bring you this gift in appreciation for all that you have done for me,” said Altuve, according to Pedrique.
“José is one of my biggest achievements of my career, in this case, as a scout,” Pedrique said. “He’s like a son for me and that gesture at that moment meant everything for me. In my studio, where I keep all my sports memorabilia, I keep that glove in a very special place.”
The only thing missing is that original scouting report.
Inset Image 1: Topps
Inset Image 2: Rob Tringali / Getty Images Sport