North Florida assistant baseball coach Brad Weitzel moved on in December 1991, to scouting, The Palm Beach post wrote.
Weitzel was named then as Minnesota Twins scouting supervisor for Florida, The Post wrote.
"My dream was always to get a chance to play pro ball," Weitzel told The Post then, "but this is the next best thing."
Weitzel may never have played professionally, but he did go on to a long career as a scout - and back as a coach in college, including 12 seasons spent as an assistant at Florida.
Weitzel played in college, at Palm Beach Community College and at Georgia. After missing on the pros, he returned to Palm Beach as a coach.
He then moved to North Florida - and moonlighted in the pros. In 1990, he served as a coach for the independent co-op Erie Sailors.
Weitzel continued as a scout for the Twins through 2007. Along the way, he signed the likes of A.J. Pierzynski and Doug Mientkiewicz.
In May 1995, Weitzel explained to The Naples Daily News his job.
"I start scouting when they get out of their cars, from the time I see them to the time they leave," Weitzel told The Daily News. "It's not that hard to see if a kid has the tools. The hard part is figuring out what's inside the kid - his make-up."
Weitzel then joined the Florida coaching staff for 2008. He stayed in that role as assistant coach through 2019.
In 2017, Weitzel's Gators won the College World Series. He watched the team celebrate while standing on the field at shortstop, FloridaGators.com wrote.
"I made my mark at shortstop,'' Weitzel, who played the position at Georgia in college, told the site. "That's where it all started for me. This is special."
- Palm Beach Post, Dec. 22, 1991: Goldwire makes life easy for coach
- Naples Daily News, May 17, 1995: Scouts look for a diamond in the rough at prep All-Star game
- FloridaGators.com, June 28, 2017: Champs At Last: Gators' Quest for First National Title is Over
- WGFL, June 7, 2018: From coach to colleague, Gator baseball's Brad Weitzel works alongside his former players
Made the Majors:1,385-32.7%
Never Made Majors:2,856-67.3%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors:562
10+ Seasons in the Minors:345
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