Sox owner Tom Yawkey outbid Brown, however, and signed Agganis to play Major League Baseball for the Red Sox as a first baseman for $35,000. At the time of his death, Agganis was spending his off-season at his alma mater as an assistant coach, tutoring Tom Gastall, another quarterback who decided to play professional baseball and died young. Baseball career Following his 1953 college graduation, Agganis played with Triple-A Louisville where he hit .281 with 23 home runs and 108 RBI. He made his major league debut on April 13, 1954. Agganis had a modest rookie campaign, although he did lead American League first basemen in assists and fielding percentage. He hit 11 home runs that year, with 57 RBI and a .251 batting average. Death In 1955, Agganis briefly lost his starting position to rookie Norm Zauchin. On June 2, he was hospitalized with pneumonia, severe fever and chest pains. He rejoined the Red Sox ten days later and played two games against the Chicago White Sox, before falling ill again in Kansas City, Missouri, on June 5. He was diagnosed with a viral infection and flown back to Sancta Maria Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where a doctor partially blamed his playing too soon after the first illness. The Red Sox placed him on the voluntary retired list until he recuperated, an early version of the disabled list. He began showing signs of improvement, before a fatal pulmonary embolism on June 27. Red Sox general manager Joe Cronin told the Associated Press that everyone related to the Red Sox organization was "grieved and shocked", calling Agganis "a grand boy", and saying the team would wear #6 black armbands to honor him. American League president Will Harridge said his office was "saddened and shocked", and Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey said he was "stunned", calling Agganis "a man of great character". Ten thousand mourners saw his body lie in state at St. George's Greek Orthodox Church in Lynn. Legacy Agganis was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1974. Gaffney Street, near the former site of Braves Field in Boston, was renamed Harry Agganis Way in 1995. Agganis Arena is a multipurpose sports facility at Boston University. The Harry Agganis Stadium located on Camp Lejeune was named in his honor. The Agganis Foundation has awarded more than $1.1 million in college scholarships to 780 student-athletes from Boston and