Mickey Harris
From BR Bullpen
Maurice Charles Harris
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 0", Weight 195 lb.
- Debut April 23, 1940
- Final Game September 3, 1952
- Born January 30, 1917 in New York, NY USA
- Died April 15, 1971 in Farmington, MI USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Boston Red Sox scout Jack Egan signed Mickey Harris to a contract in 1938 for a $150 bonus and a $100 a month salary. Mickey opened his career with the Clarksdale Red Sox of the class C Cotton States League and the 21-year-old left-hander went 17-18 with a 3.34 ERA. 1939 would see Mickey with the Scranton Red Sox where he won 17 and lost 4 with a 2.40 ERA, leading the Eastern League with 148 K's and making the All-Star Team. Mickey would be back in Scranton in '40, winning 10 and losing 5 with a league-leading 2.25 ERA. He was called up to Fenway Park late in the season and went 4-2 in 13 appearances, his first in the big leagues.
Harris would be in the Boston Red Sox starting rotation from the get-go in 1941, winning 8 and losing 14 with a 3.25 ERA, pitching 222 innings. Mickey barely finished the season when he was inducted into the United States Military Services on October 14, 1941. He would attain the rank of Corporal while serving with the Sixth Air Force Unit, stationed in the Panama Canal Zone. Harris mustered out of the Armed Services in October 1945 and would return to the Red Sox primed for the '46 season.
Mickey came back like a ball of fire, winning 17 and losing 9 in 1946 and the Red Sox ran away with the pennant by 12 games over the runner-up Detroit Tigers but faltered in the World Series losing to the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 3. In the World Series Mickey was the starter and loser to Harry Brecheen and the Cardinals in games two and six by scores of 3-0 and 4-1.
After the 1946 season, things seemed to get tougher for Mickey. He became bothered with arm problems and in 1947 he fell to 5-4. In '48, he was 7-10 and he was 2-3 for the 1949 Red Sox when he was traded to the Washington Senators along with Sam Mele for Walt Masterson on June 13, 1949. In 1950 he won only 5 and lost 9 for the Senators but he was their main man out of the bullpen leading the American league in both appearances with 53 and saves with 15.
In 1951, Harris was 6-8 with a 3.81 ERA for the Senators and on April 22, 1952 he was selected off waivers by the Cleveland Indians, proceeding to go 3-0 for the Indians in 29 appearances. He was released at age 35 before the 1953 season. This finished his professional baseball career with a lifetime major league record of 59-71 with a 4.18 ERA. Mickey had spent eleven active seasons in pro baseball, (1938-52), exclusive of his four years in the Military Service and would die following a short illness on April 15, 1971 in Farmington, MI. He was 54 years old.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- AL All-Star (1946)
- AL Games Pitched Leader (1950)
- AL Saves Leader (1950)
- 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (1946)
- 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 1 (1946)
