He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and outfielder for the Chicago White Sox (1963–70), Washington Senators (1971), Cleveland Indians (1972 and 1974–75) and California Angels (1973–74).

The native of Malvern, Arkansas, stood 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and weighed 183 pounds (83 kg) during his playing days.

In 13 big-league seasons he played in 1,468 games and had 3,956 at bats, 484 runs, 972 hits, 150 doubles, 42 triples, 75 home runs, 404 RBI, 143 stolen bases, 332 walks, .246 batting average, .309 on-base percentage, .362 slugging percentage, 1,431 total bases, 42 sacrifice hits, 26 sacrifice flies and 48 intentional walks.

McCraw was also involved in a bizarre play against his future team, the Indians, at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium on May 17 of that year.

[1] McCraw enjoyed a long career as a batting coach after his active career ended, logging 24 seasons on the Major League staffs of the Cleveland Indians (1975; 1979–82), San Francisco Giants (1983–85), Baltimore Orioles (1989–91), New York Mets (1992–96), Houston Astros (1997–2000), and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (2002–05).