WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The baseball world mourns the loss of Jeff Bittiger, a pitcher who left his mark in the Major Leagues for four seasons and dedicated the last 22 years of his life to scouting within the Athletics organization. Bittiger passed away on Saturday morning at the age of 63, according to the team.The cause of death was not revealed by the team.Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Bittiger debuted in the majors with the Phillies on September 2, 1986. The right-hander, 5 feet 10 inches tall, had a 4-6 record with a 4.77 ERA in 33 appearances for the Phillies, the Twins, and the White Sox.His last game in the Major Leagues was in 1989 with the White Sox. The Athletics reported that he continued playing independent baseball until he was 40 years old.As an area scout for the Athletics, Bittiger was responsible for signing right-handed pitcher Andrew Bailey, who was the American League Rookie of the Year in 2009. In addition, he was part of the team’s professional scouting staff for the last decade.
Jeff dedicated his whole life to baseball: playing, coaching, and scouting. He was as good a person as he was a scout, and he was a great scout. He knew pitchers perfectly and you could tell how much he loved baseball just by being around him.
Billy Beane, senior advisor to Athletics owner John Fisher, and former general manager of the club
