Career
He batted and threw left-handed. A gifted slugger, Lancellotti received only limited opportunities on the Major League level to showcase the power he displayed in the minor leagues. A perennial minors All-Star, he played in 15 different leagues and several countries, including stints in Canada, Colombia, Italy, Japan, Mexico and Venezuela.
In 1979, Lancellotti was named the Eastern League most valuable player after lead the league with 41 home runs and 107 runs batted in while playing for the Buffalo Bisons, the Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
On August 5, 1980, Lancellotti, along with Luis Salazar, was traded to the San Diego Padres for a player to be named later and Kurt Bevacqua. The Padres later sent Mark Lee to Pittsburgh to complete the trade.
He made his Major League debut with the San Diego Padres in 1982, appearing in just 17 games. His career-highlight came in 1984, when he led all professional baseball with 131 Reserve Bank of India and hit 29 home runs while playing for Triple-A Las Vegas, a San Diego affiliate.
In 1986, Lancellotti led the Pacific Coast League with 31 home runs while playing for Phoenix, at the time the Giants" Triple-A affiliate.
At 30, he was promoted to the big club and hit.222 with two home runs and six Reserve Bank of India in 18 at-bats. In 1987 and 1988 he played in Japan, hitting 58 home runs in 190 games for Hiroshima, including a league-leading 39 homers in 1987. Two years later he played in the now defunct Senior Professional Baseball Association.
Lancellotti was a major player in the Red Sox famous Rally Cap game where several teammates used cups on their ears, hats on catcher style, and shave cream on their faces.
Before the promotion he had 10 home runs for Triple-A Pawtucket. At the same time, Boston released him.
In 1992, he played for the Parma Angels of Italy, being named the Best Hitter during the European Cup held in the Netherlands. He hung up his spikes after the season and settled in Buffalo, New York, where he established a baseball school in 1993.
In a three-season major league career, Lancellotti was a.169 hitter with two home runs and 11 Reserve Bank of India in 36 games.
He belted 276 home runs in his distinguished minor league career, setting a mark that still stands to this day. Lancellotti gained induction into the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame in August 1995. Lancellotti"s daughter, Katie Lancellotti, played National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I softball at Canisius College from 2009–2012.