Elander Victor Harris (June 10, 1905 – February 23, 1978)
Played for: Pittsburgh Keystones (1922), Cleveland Tate Stars (1923), Cleveland Browns (1924), Chicago American Giants (1924), Homestead Grays (1925–1932), Detroit Wolves (1932), Homestead Grays (1933), Pittsburgh Crawfords (1934), Homestead Grays (1935–1945, 1947)
Managed: Homestead Grays (1936–1942, 1945–1948)
647 games, slash-line of .303/.370/.428/.798, 391 RBIs, 738 hits, 112 OPS+ and 10.6 WAR
547–278–20 (.663) in 11 seasons
9 league pennants as player/manager (seven as manager)
NWS champion as manager
East-West All-Star (1933, 1934, 1938, 1939, 1942, 1943, 1947)*
Time has rewarded the Negro leagues. You might know that baseball didn't allow black players to play baseball until the 1940s because of racist slime that operated the leagues. But there were many leagues of baseball for players and managers to engage in for the 20th century, one of which being the Negro National League. It was in 2024 that MLB integrated Negro league stats into their records. Please note that Retrosheet and Baseball Reference have their own quibbles about postseason play. As player-manager, Harris won his first league pennant in his second season in 1937 with the NNL that saw them win 60 of 80 games. The Grays would finish in first place in 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, and 1942, which all saw them win over 60% of their games. There were some challenges, at least. The 1939 postseason saw four teams play each other: the Grays, Philadelphia Stars, Baltimore Elite Giants, and Newark Eagles. Homestead defeated Philadelphia before facing Baltimore in a "Championship Series". Homestead won Game 1...but did not win any of the next four games, losing 3-1-1. The 1941 team was reported by Retrosheet as having defeated the New York Cubans in four games for a Championship Series win, although baseball stats do not currently exist to see in full. In 1942, for the first time in fifteen years, black baseball had a "World Series", matching the Negro American League champion Kansas City Monarchs (managed by Frank Duncan). The Grays lost in four official games (they played two exhibitions, somehow).
Harris stepped down to work at a defense plant after 1942 that saw him play a total of 73 games from 1943 to 1945 (37/19/17). Candy Jim Taylor managed the next two seasons, which actually resulted in pennants and victories in the World Series. But Harris would reprise his player-manager role in 1945, where he managed the last four seasons of what is considered major league black baseball. The 1945 team went 47-26-1 and finished first place. They played in the Negro World Series and lost in a sweep to the Cleveland Buckeyes. The Grays had two "down" years that saw them win 54% of their games but finish 3rd and 4th. In the last hurrah of 1948, the Grays went 56-24-2 and won the NNL. This time, a Championship Series came around with the Grays vs. the Elite Giants. They won in a strange four-game series*. The Grays met the Birmingham Black Barons in the World Series, who had Willie Mays as a player. Homestead won the Series in five games, with a 10th inning 10-6 victory on October 5, 1948 being considered among the last of the "major league" games in black baseball. Sure, there was plenty of barnstorming to do with lesser crowds, but the stars were not nearly as bright (Mays played for the major league Giants not too long after). Harris managed for Baltimore in 1949 and Birmingham in 1950 before becoming a custodian for schools in Castiac, California.
Has He Been Voted On?: Harris has been considered three times: 2006 (ignored), 2021 (not enough votes), and 2025 (less than five votes*). The Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals, who have Hall of Fames/Honor to celebrate Gray legends due to the team playing in both regions have never included Harris in their rolls.
In closing: In totality, Harris batted .305 as a player while being on the roster of nine NNL pennants and three NWS championships. He managed to win the pennant as manager seven times and did I mention he never had a losing record in 11 seasons? With a record of 547–278–20 (.663), he has the highest winning percentage of all managers in major league history. He should have been known as among the legends of all managers. Sure, sixteen people connected with the Grays (player, owner) have been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but Harris deserved better. According to Baseball Reference's own page of managers, Harris is 5th all time in pennants won with seven (as pictured here), having the same amount of Walter Alston. Of all managers with three league pennants (43), Harris is one of just seven non-active/just retired to not be in the Hall. He would be an obvious person to recommend for the Baseball Hall of Fame by me.
On behalf of the Unsung Hall of Fame, it is my privilege to welcome Vic Harris as the very first member.
Notes
*The Grays won the first two games before Game 3 was suspended due to curfew. The Grays lost Game 4, but when it came time to re-play Game 3, officials ruled it would be replayed from when the game was stopped: 8-4 lead for the Grays in the 9th, rather than the end of the completed inning of 4-4 after 8. Baltimore forfeited the game and therefore lost the series.
*That committee was comprised of 16 voters that were tasked to vote on eight players and could only vote for three maximum that needed 12 votes to pass. These were the voters:
The 16-member committee (of which, 75% or 12 votes were required for election) consisted of the following individuals: Paul Molitor, Eddie Murray, Tony Pérez, Lee Smith, Ozzie Smith, Joe Torre, Sandy Alderson, Terry McGuirk, Dayton Moore, Arte Moreno, Brian Sabean, Bob Elliott, Leslie Heaphy, Steve Hirdt, Dick Kaegel, and Larry Lester.
Somehow, Harris got less than five votes from people that you would think know better. But no.
Of course, the Pirates (found here on Twitter) didn't have the decency to retire Dave Parker's 39 before he died, so I expect nothing from them. The Nationals honor the Expos (a team they stole), they can't find a living relative of Harris? Also, if someone bugs the @Pirates or @Nationals into actually putting out a statement about honoring the Grays like Harris, I would die of laughter.
Please note that East-West All-Star Games sometimes were held multiple times, as one does when trying to get attention for a practice that started in 1933 that went by geographical location for vote counting to tally in the Chicago Defender and Pittsburgh Courier. Harris is one of 29 players to get selected to the East-West game five times
Image: Center for Negro League Baseball Research, File:Vic Harris.jpg - Wikipedia
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