Howie Haak Biography

Howie Haak

Pittsburgh Pirates scout who discovered future Hall-of-Famer Roberto Clemente and was instrumental in building Pirates teams that won three World Series and nine division titles; scouted extensively in Latin America for Pittsburgh from 1950-88, well before it became common practice in the major leagues; also discovered Pittsburgh greats Manny Sanguillen (Panama), Rennie Stennett (Panama) and Tony Pena (Puerto Rico); made headlines in 1982 by telling reporters that he heard fans were staying away from Three Rivers Stadium because the Pirates fielded an all-black team; left in 1988 after a confrontation with then-GM Syd Thrift and scouted for the Houston Astros for five years. He died of complications from a stroke.