The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will be considering several former Negro League players to be included for election to the Class of 2022. (The election will take place on December 5, 2021).
Seven Negro Leagues and pre-Negro Leagues legends will be considered - Today we focus on - Vic Harris.
Vic Harris played 18 seasons in the Negro Leagues, primarily as a left fielder for the legendary Homestead Grays. He compiled a .305 career batting average and was known as one of the most aggressive base runners in the Negro National League. Harris also managed the Grays for 11 seasons, winning seven Negro National League pennants and the 1948 World Series.
Harris spent most his career with the Homestead Grays as both a player and manager. He was a member of the Grays during the 1920s and 1930s, and a player-manager of the 9x champs won in consecutive years from 1937 to 1945. During Harris' final year as a manager, the Grays would capture the last Negro National League championship.
As a player, the left-handed batter was a consistent hitter with a lifetime .299 batting average. Defensively, he was a good fielder, and as he got older he was still valuable as an utility outfielder and pinch hitter. He appeared in six East-West All Star games, ranging from a starting spot in left field in the inaugural game in 1933 to a pinch-running appearance in the 1947 contest.
Harris was part of the 1931 Homestead Grays who featured Josh Gibson, Oscar Charleston and Smokey Joe Williams.
In 1935, Harris became player manager of the Grays hitting .370. In 1938, he hit for a .380 batting average, slugged 10 home runs, and stole 17 bases.
Harris' long career included stops with Santa Clara in Cuba in 1937-1939 and in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1935-1936, he also managed in Santurce in the Puerto Rican league in the winters of 1947-1950.
Source: James A. Riley, The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues, New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, Inc., 1994.
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