Baseball reacts to loss of longtime Reds scout Gene Bennett

The baseball world and Reds organization mourn the loss longtime scout and executive Gene Bennett.

The Reds broadcast honored Bennett on Wednesday. Bennett, a longtime Reds scout, passed away at age 89 earlier in the day.

"Gene was one of the game's great scouts," Reds owner Bob Castellini said. "He loved baseball, loved his team and forever changed the way we looked for talented players."

Bennett began scouting in 1958, became a supervisor in 1975 and worked as a senior special assistant to general managers from 1992 until his retirement in 2011.

He signed Barry Larkin, Jeff Russell and Paul O’Neill, among others. He famously advocated the Reds draft Derek Jeter in 1992.

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