A native of Medford, Massachusetts, Coleman attended Malden Catholic High School, where he was coached by Brother Gilbert Mathias, who had mentored Babe Ruth as a youth in Baltimore. In 1940, Mathias introduced Coleman to Ruth, who was visiting the school. After watching Coleman pitch, Ruth took him aside and helped him throw a more effective curveball.[1]
He finished 19th in voting for the 1954 American League MVP for having a 13–17 win–loss record, 33 games, 32 games started, 15 complete games, 4 shutouts, 221+1⁄3 innings pitched, 184 hits allowed, 102 runs allowed, 86 earned runs allowed, 16 home runs allowed, 96 walks allowed, 103 strikeouts, 3 hit batsmen, 1 wild pitch, 912 batters faced, and a 3.50 ERA.
In 10 seasons he had a 52–76 win–loss record, 223 games, 140 games started, 60 complete games, 11 shutouts, 55 games finished, 6 saves, 1134 innings pitched, 1172 hits allowed, 616 runs allowed, 552 earned runs allowed, 92 home runs allowed, 566 walks allowed, 444 strikeouts, 13 hit batsmen, 19 wild pitches, 4993 batters faced, 3 balks, and a 4.38 ERA.