After attending Columbia University and playing on its baseball team, he played for the Buckeyes of Cincinnati, one of the leading amateur teams in the Midwest.

Along with two of his teammates, Andy Leonard and Charlie Sweasy, he was recruited by Harry Wright as the utility man for the rival Cincinnati Red Stockings in 1869–70, being paid $600 per season for his efforts.

He briefly returned to professional baseball in the fledgling National Association as an outfielder for the Washington Olympics in 1872.

In 1916, Hurley managed the Great Falls Electrics in the Northwestern League.

This biographical article relating to an American baseball outfielder born in the 1840s is a stub.