Tommy Harper
From BR Bullpen
Tommy Harper
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 5' 10", Weight 168 lb.
- School San Francisco State University
- High School Encinal High School
- Debut April 9, 1962
- Final Game September 29, 1976
- Born October 14, 1940 in Oak Grove, LA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Tommy Harper played 15 seasons in the big leagues, showing both power and speed. In 1969 he led the American League with 73 stolen bases while the next season he was seventh in the American League with 31 home runs.
Tommy was at San Francisco State University in 1959 and signed with the Cincinnati Reds in 1960. He spent 1960 and 1961 in the minors with Topeka, hitting .324 in 1961. He made his major league debut in April 1962 but spent most of the season in the minors with San Diego, where he hit .333 with 26 home runs.
At age 22, Harper became the Reds' regular right fielder, filling out an outfield that also included Frank Robinson in left and Vada Pinson in center. Another 22-year-old rookie, Pete Rose, played second base and hit about as well as Harper did.
Harper played for the Reds through 1967, leading the National League in 1965 in runs scored. He was fifth in the league in walks in 1965 and from 1964 to 1967 was always in the top six in the league in stolen bases.
After the 1967 season the Reds traded him to the Cleveland Indians, where he spent the deepest season of the second dead-ball era. Harper hit only .217, on a team that hit .234. In 266 at-bats he had six homers for the Indians, a total which was actually tied for fifth-best on the team.
Harper was selected from the Indians by the Seattle Pilots in the 1969 expansion draft. He was Seattle's second selection. That year, he led the American League with 73 stolen bases. He stayed with the team as they moved to Milwaukee and in 1970 had his best year, hitting .296 with 31 home runs, and an OPS+ of 146 which was sixth-best in the league. He made the All-Star team and was sixth in the MVP voting.
After 1971 he was traded to the Boston Red Sox, where he spent three years. In 1973 he again led the league with 53 stolen bases and also added 17 home runs. He was a year younger than teammate Carl Yastrzemski.
He split 1975 between the California Angels and the Oakland Athletics, and appeared in his only post-season game with the A's. During the regular season for the A's he hit .319 in 34 games. He finished up his major league career with the 1976 Baltimore Orioles, a team which also featured Reggie Jackson in his only year in Baltimore.
Harper later coached for the San Francisco Giants, Montreal Expos and Boston Red Sox. He and contemporary Bud Harrelson are two of only three major league players to come out of San Francisco State University.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 1963 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
- AL All-Star (1970)
- NL Runs Scored Leader (1965)
- 2-time AL Stolen Bases Leader (1969 & 1973)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1970)
- 30-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1970)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 2 (1965 & 1970)
- 50 Stolen Bases Seasons: 2 (1969 & 1973)
