Harry Craft
From BR Bullpen
Harry Francis Craft (Wildfire)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 1", Weight 185 lb.
- School Mississippi College
- Debut September 19, 1937
- Final Game July 14, 1942
- Born April 19, 1915 in Ellisville, MS USA
- Died August 3, 1995 in Conroe, TX USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Harry Craft played center field with pretty good range for six years with the Cincinnati Reds. He was part of the pennant-winning teams of 1939 and 1940.
His best year with the bat was 1938, however, before the pennant-winning seasons, when he hit 15 home runs and had 83 RBI, both in the top ten in the league. He went on to play for the Kansas City Blues from 1942 to 1948, missing the 1944-1945 seasons due to military service.
After his playing career ended, he became a manager in the New York Yankees system, managing Mickey Mantle in his first years of pro ball. Craft managed the Independence Yankees (1949), Joplin Miners (1950), Beaumont Roughnecks (1951-1952), and Kansas City Blues (1953-1954).
Craft joined the Kansas City Athletics coaching staff in 1955 and replaced Lou Boudreau as the team's manager in 1957. He remained with the team through the 1959 season and became a Chicago Cubs coach the next year. He managed the Cubs in 1961 as a member of the club's College of Coaches. He left the Cubs the next season to manage the expansion Houston Colt .45s. Craft was fired as skipper near the end of the 1964 season. He remained in the game as a scout and farm system official for the Baltimore Orioles and the Yankees, retiring in 1991.
[edit] Notable Achievement
- Won a World Series with the Cincinnati Reds in 1940
| Preceded by Lou Boudreau | Kansas City Athletics Manager 1957-1959 | Succeeded by Bob Elliott |
| Preceded by N/A | Houston Colt .45s Manager 1962-1964 | Succeeded by Lum Harris |
