Major League Baseball Player. For four seasons (1955, 1957 to 1958 and 1961), he was an infielder (primarily a shortstop) with the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox. During his collegiate years at Siena College in New York, Harrell was a two-sport athlete who excelled in baseball and basketball. On the hardwood, he helped transform the school's program into a national powerhouse and was a key member of Siena's 1949-1950 squad which captured the National Catholic Invitational Tournament. He received honorable mention All-American status. He could have pursued a career in professional basketball with the Minneapolis Lakers in addition to the Harlem Globetrotters, however he chose baseball. He spent 1951 with the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues and for one season, he played basketball with the Saratoga Harlem Yankees of the American Basketball League (1951-1952). He was selected by the Indians as an amateur free agent in 1952 and marked his Major League debut with Cleveland on September 2, 1955. In 13 games that season, he produced a .421 batting average. In 1958, he yielded career-highs in games played with 101, hits with 50 and home runs with 7. In 173 regular season games, he compiled 79 hits with a .231 lifetime batting average. After retiring from baseball, he was employed with the State Youth Division in Albany, New York. He was inducted into Siena's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1966. His uniform number 10 was retired by the school.
Major League Baseball Player. For four seasons (1955, 1957 to 1958 and 1961), he was an infielder (primarily a shortstop) with the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox. During his collegiate years at Siena College in New York, Harrell was a two-sport athlete who excelled in baseball and basketball. On the hardwood, he helped transform the school's program into a national powerhouse and was a key member of Siena's 1949-1950 squad which captured the National Catholic Invitational Tournament. He received honorable mention All-American status. He could have pursued a career in professional basketball with the Minneapolis Lakers in addition to the Harlem Globetrotters, however he chose baseball. He spent 1951 with the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues and for one season, he played basketball with the Saratoga Harlem Yankees of the American Basketball League (1951-1952). He was selected by the Indians as an amateur free agent in 1952 and marked his Major League debut with Cleveland on September 2, 1955. In 13 games that season, he produced a .421 batting average. In 1958, he yielded career-highs in games played with 101, hits with 50 and home runs with 7. In 173 regular season games, he compiled 79 hits with a .231 lifetime batting average. After retiring from baseball, he was employed with the State Youth Division in Albany, New York. He was inducted into Siena's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1966. His uniform number 10 was retired by the school.
Bio by: C.S.
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