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James William Harris
Kansas City Royals
Infield
Born: November 24, 1943, Hamlet, NC
Drafted: Drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 27th round of the 1966 amateur draft
Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1968; Kansas City Royals 1969
Died: December 20, 2020, Hampstead, NC (age 77)
Originally drafted by the Indians, Billy Harris made his big league debut on June 16, 1968, and would appear in 38 games as a back-up infielder and pinch-hitter. Harris made 28 starts during his longest stretch in the majors - 21 at second base and seven at third base. He batted .213 (20 for 94) with five doubles and a triple, and was left unprotected by the Indians for the 1968 expansion draft. Taken by the Royals as the 36th pick, Harris played sparingly in 1969, seeing action in 30 games for the Omaha Royals and playing in five games for Kansas City in early June and September. He'd play professionally for two more seasons in the Royals and Reds organizations before retiring. In 43 games in the majors, Harris batted .218 with three RBIs.
Originally drafted by the Indians, Billy Harris made his big league debut on June 16, 1968, and would appear in 38 games as a back-up infielder and pinch-hitter. Harris made 28 starts during his longest stretch in the majors - 21 at second base and seven at third base. He batted .213 (20 for 94) with five doubles and a triple, and was left unprotected by the Indians for the 1968 expansion draft. Taken by the Royals as the 36th pick, Harris played sparingly in 1969, seeing action in 30 games for the Omaha Royals and playing in five games for Kansas City in early June and September. He'd play professionally for two more seasons in the Royals and Reds organizations before retiring. In 43 games in the majors, Harris batted .218 with three RBIs.
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| 1970 Topps #512 |
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)
On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.
Having had success the prior two shows at Uncle Dick's Cards with his well-organized, neon common binders, I opted to pull up a chair once again at the friendly dealer's array of tables. The aim was simple: Clear out Uncle Dick's 1969 Topps commons, starting off where I had left off the year before with card #501 and going through the end of the set, card #664. In less than 25 minutes, I completed my quest, and this is the 38th of 98 commons pulled from the binder. After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than a dollar.
The Card / Royals Team Set / Accuracy Index +10
Harris didn't have a long major league career, but he graced two Topps flagship sets, which is an exciting accomplishment on its own. This is his rookie card, and Topps featured him again in its 1970 set. The back of the card highlights his strong high school and collegiate baseball career, and the cartoon shows his offseason job as a gym teacher.
Accuracy Index: Harris' rookie card scores a +10.
1969 Season
I'm not sure what would have limited Harris' playing time during the season, but he'd play in only 35 games between Triple-A and the majors. Harris' five games with the Royals came on June 7th and 8th, and then three more games as a September call-up. He was a pinch-hitter in all five appearances, seeing the field for a few innings at second base on June 8th. Harris batted .286 (2 for 7) with a double for his Royals career.
First Mainstream Card: 1969 Topps #569
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (2): 1969-70
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1970 Topps #512
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 5 in the Beckett online database as of 3/9/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
#568 Cecil Upshaw - Atlanta Braves / #570 Ron Santo - Chicago Cubs
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