By Tracy Ringolsby
September 28, 2005

DENVER--Back in the summer of 1972, Pat Daugherty was the head baseball coach at Indian Hills Community College in Iowa. He decided to take a summer job, coaching the Expos' entry in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League.

Thirty-three years later, college coaching long a part of his past, Daugherty has become one of the more respected men in professional baseball.

Daugherty, the Rockies' original scouting director and currently a special assistant to general manager Dan O'Dowd, was selected the Midwest Scout of the Year by his peers.

Roberta Mazur, executive director of the Scout of the Year Foundation, announced the award Tuesday. Roger Jongewaard was selected the West Coast winner, Carl Lowenstein was named the East Coast winner, and Doug Gassaway received the Directors Award. The quartet will receive their honors Dec. 7 in Dallas as part of the annual Winter Meetings.

"It's a great honor," said Daugherty. "I'm not sure if I deserved it."

Others felt he did. Each of the 30 major league organizations nominated a candidate for the award, and then the scouts themselves vote for the three regional winners.

Daugherty made the move into scouting in 1985 with the Expos and joined the Rockies in their formative stages, in September 1991. There was initial talk that Daugherty would eventually move over to be the Rockies farm director, but it never happened.

"I enjoyed scouting and wanted to keep scouting," said Daugherty.

He was the scouting director for eight years, and 40 players that he drafted and signed have made it to the big leagues. Including 18 who have played in the big leagues this year.

Current Rockies signed under Daughtery's regime are righthanders Jamey Wright (first round, 1993), Jason Jennings (first round, 1999), and Aaron Cook (second round, 1997); first baseman Todd Helton (first round, 1995); and outfielders Choo Freeman (supplemental pick, 1998) and Matt Holliday (seventh round, 1998).

Other active big league players the Rockies signed while Daugherty was scouting director include Diamondbacks second baseman Craig Counsell (11th round, 1992); Marlins outfielder Juan Pierre (14th round, 1998); Indians righthander Jake Westbrook (first round, 1996); and Angels sparkplug Chone Figgins (fourth round, 1997).

"It's been fun to watch the kids develop into men," Daughtery said.

Jongewaard, currently a major league scout with the Devil Rays, spent the previous 19 years as the Mariners' top talent evaluator, and was the scouting director who drafted Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez with the No. 1 overall picks in 1987 and 1993.

Lowenstein is a major league scout for the Dodgers, while Gassaway most recently gained notoriety for signing Jim Morris of "The Rookie" fame.