Mickey Harrington, whose entire major league career consisted of a pinch running appearance with the 1963 Phillies,
passed away on Wednesday, September 20, 2017. He was 82.
Mickey was a star athlete in high school in Mississippi, excelling in both baseball and basketball. Several baseball teams attempted to sign him out of high school, but Mickey opted to attend college instead. Offered scholarships from over 30 colleges, including Duke, Mickey stayed close to home and starred for the University of Southern Miss for four seasons. The New York Knicks drafted Mickey upon graduation, but so did Uncle Sam. After finishing his military hitch, Mickey signed with the Phillies and played 10 seasons of minor league ball (nearly all of it at AAA). His career minor league average was .290.
Called up to the majors on June 30, 1963, Harrington's moment in the major league sun came on July 10, when he was called upon to pinch run for Roy Sievers in a game against the Giants. He advanced to second, but the inning ended when Clay Dalrymple grounded to second for a force out and Harrington was picked off of third after taking too wide of a turn.
"I was expecting to at least get an at-bat," he said. "I was 6 feet 4, 205 pounds, and it was disappointing to be used as a pinch-runner. I figured someone else would pick me up and I'd get another chance, but I never did." Mickey was returned to the minors 5 days later without appearing in another game.
When his playing career ended, Mickey returned home to Mississippi and spent nearly 30 years as an assistant baseball and basketball coach for his alma mater, USM.
The attached Phillies image is (I think) a slightly larger version of the one posted here by bearman14. The two minor league images are of Mickey with Dallas Ft. Worth (circa 1961-62) from an eBay offering and Mickey with Buffalo (circa 1959-60) from a Google search. Another image of Mickey with Buffalo, posted by Baseball-Birthdays, appears here.