Harry Minor

Harry Mallory Minor

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 210 lb.
• High School Woodrow Wilson Classical High School

• Born March 7, 1928 in San Pedro, CA USA
• Died January 18, 2017 in Long Beach, CA USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

Harry Minor was involved in baseball for 65 years as a player, manager and scout.

Minor was signed out of high school by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He began his career as a pitcher-outfielder for the 1947 Riverside Dons, hitting .299/.370/.462 while going 6-10 with a 6.29 ERA and 96 walks in 123 IP, indicating his future was at the plate instead of on the mound. He hit .273 and slugged .429 for the 1948 Waco Pirates then had his best year in terms of raw numbers for the 1949 Keokuk Pirates - .350 AVG, 24 HR, .579 SLG and 97 RBI. He won the Central Association batting title (12 points ahead of John Miller), was second to Jack Tanner in slugging, tied Joe Macko for second in RBI behind Tanner and was second in homers (13 behind Tanner, the only other player over 20). He reached AAA with the 1950 Buffalo Bisons, hitting a respectable .278/.351/.414 while backing up players such as Jack Creel, Herb Adams and Bob Wellman in the outfield. It was his only full year at AAA.

He missed 1951-1952 due to military service. In '53, he was with the Savannah Indians (.258/.390/.437 in 89 G) and Ottawa A's (3 for 21, 2 BB). As Savannah's main catcher, he just missed the South Atlantic League top 10 in home runs, tied with Ted Del Guercio for 11th at 13. He saw little action in 1954 with the Birmingham Barons (.247/.340/.447 in 33 G) and Ottawa (9 for 33, 2 2B, 6 BB). He batted .250/.358/.396 with 12 home runs for the 1955 Little Rock Travelers. His 14 passed balls led Southern Association backstops, two ahead of Danny Kravitz, and his 15 errors tied him for second, one behind Cal Neeman. With Little Rock/the Montgomery Rebels in 1956, he struggled (.202/?/.275 in 111 G). Moving down a few rungs in 1957 with the Salinas Packers, he hit .310/.435/.477 with 15 homers, 96 walks and 83 runs. He was 6th in the California League in walks. He fielded only .888 in the outfield (his main position; he also saw time at C and 1B), the lowest of any California Leaguer that year. He spent the next three years as player-manager of the Wellsville Braves. He hit .289/?/.468 with 17 HR in 1958, tying for 7th in the New York-Penn League in dingers. He led the team to titles in 1959 and 1960. In '59, he produced at a .318/.473/.522 clip in 97 games, with 86 walks and 86 runs while only striking out 27 times. He was 6th in the NYPL in average, presumably in the top 10 in OBP and was among the top fielders at 1B (.984). In his last year as a player, the veteran fell to .269 with a .449 slugging percentage in 66 games. He had hit 124 home runs in the minor leagues.

He scouted for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1961-1967), and New York Mets (1968-2012). Articles mention that he helped sign Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Lenny Dykstra, Mookie Wilson, Wally Backman, Gregg Jefferies, Hubie Brooks, Kevin Mitchell and Kevin Elster, though he wasn't the signing scout for many of those players; he may have covered them as a cross-checker. In 2013, he was the first scout inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame.

Minor's son, Bob Minor, has scouted for the New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks. Another son, Steve Minor, also was a scout.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
1958	Wellsville Braves	New York-Penn League	70-56	1st	Milwaukee Braves	Lost League Finals
1959	Wellsville Braves	New York-Penn League	80-46	1st	Milwaukee Braves	League Champs
1960	Wellsville Braves	New York-Penn League	69-60	2nd	Milwaukee Braves	League Champs
1969	Visalia Mets	California League	49-36	2nd	New York Mets	Lost League Finals	replaced Chuck Estrada (1-1) on June 11

Related Sites

• Press Telegram article
• Long Beach Brunion Gazette article
• obituary