Harris was the Cincinnati Reds' fifth-round pick in the 1983 amateur draft. He made his major league debut with the Reds in . He batted .372 in 16 games with Cincinnati in 1988. He played 61 games with the Reds in ; his batting average that year with the Reds was .223, and he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers along with Kal Daniels for Tim Leary and Mariano Duncan.
