Twins honor the late Mike Radcliff, a scout's scout

After the Twins honored longtime executive Mike Radcliff in a pregame ceremony Monday, Rob Antony stopped in one of the hallways beneath the Target Field stands to tell a story.

Radcliff, he said, was a candidate to become the Seattle Mariners general manager in 2008. He was invited for an interview and told that the job would require firing many in the organization, including scouts.

"I don't think many people know this story," said Antony, a longtime Twins executive. "He didn't interview. What he got was that they wanted someone to come in and clean house, and he said, 'That's not me,' and he pulled himself out. He said, 'I can't do that.' He always thought about people's families and the impact that would have on them."

The Twins hired Radcliff as a scout in 1987. He became their scouting director in 1993, and their vice president of player personnel in 2007.

Monday, former Twins GM Terry Ryan spoke about Radcliff at a ceremony behind home plate and in front of Radcliff's two families — those with whom he shared blood relation, and Twins scouts and employees.

"Mike was a simple man, a gifted evaluator and a great friend," Ryan said. "The most die-hard Twins fan might not know Mike when they walked by him on the street, but his fingerprints are all over this organization. He had tremendous character, had an immense work ethic, very unselfish — probably the most unselfish scout I've ever been around.

"Humble — never took credit for a good pick, not even Joe Mauer."

Ryan gave Radcliff the power to choose the first player in the 2001 draft. His choices: pitching phenom Mark Prior, power hitter Mark Teixeira and Mauer. Radcliff chose Mauer, was criticized for being provincial, and wound up taking the one who could enter the Hall of Fame next year.

Radcliff was instrumental in the selection of Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, Mauer, Justin Morneau and Glen Perkins. Two other players he had a hand in acquiring, Jorge Polanco and Max Kepler, presented a framed "Radcliff" jersey to his family behind home plate, then hugged his wife, Sherry.

Twins Vice President of Amateur Scouting Sean Johnson narrated a video that played on the scoreboard. Hunter and Cuddyer appeared on screen thanking Radcliff. Cuddyer said: "Mike Radcliff changed the course of my life. He cared about the character as much as he did about the talent on the field."

Radcliff died in early February near his home in Kansas City. He is in the Professional Scouts Hall of Fame along with Ryan.

Johnson worked closely with Radcliff for years. Monday, as he spoke about the upcoming amateur draft, he was asked what Radcliff meant to him. Like Antony, his voice caught as he spoke.

"He meant everything to me," Johnson said. "He was not only a mentor to me, but a lot of guys in our room. He was just the best."

Johnson noted that Radcliff, not one to put on airs, sometimes "looked like a tourist, maybe on vacation, not like one of the greatest scouts that ever lived. He had an unassuming presence to him, but he was also very competitive and he bled for the Twins."

During Ryan's speech, the Twins' section donned visors to honor Radcliff, who would wear either a golf visor or sun hat during his thousands of hours behind home plates across America.

Antony moved from media relations to the scouting department and found Radcliff to be an ideal mentor who told him to trust his instincts. "We talked all the time, and over the last few years, it had become more about life in general," Antony said. "You know when people die, and everyone says nothing but great things about him, and they become the greatest person in the world? Mike really was that guy.

"Photographic memory. Speed reader. Incredibly smart, yet humble. Refused to swear — because he could use other words to get his point across. There wasn't anybody who didn't like him, or respect him. Mike Radcliff never hurt anybody."