Brought in to replace the injured Tony Conigliaro, Harrelson helped the team win the pennant, but watched the team drop the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. However, in , he had his finest season, making the American League All-Star team, hitting a career-high 35 home runs, and leading the major leagues in runs batted in with 109. He also finished third in the American League Most Valuable Player balloting, with two players from the pennant-winning Detroit Tigers finishing ahead of him—pitcher Denny McLain won the award and catcher Bill Freehan finished second.
