BTN News: Willie Mays, the captivating “Say Hey Kid” whose all-around excellence, charisma and exuberance made him one of the greatest, most enduring and most beloved players in modern baseball history, died at 93. The Giants and Mays’ family stated the club Tuesday night announcing that Mays passed away earlier in the day in the Bay Area.
A Long Strange Trip in Baseball
In a statement released by the Giants, Michael Mays said: “My father has passed away peacefully and among loved ones. “Thank you from the bottom of my shattered heart for loving my boy. You’ve been his lifeblood.
Baseballs live Hall of Famer, Willie Mays, started his professional career in the Negro Leagues in 1948. He went in on the first ballot in 1979 and in 1999, The Sporting News rated him as baseball’s No. 2 best all-time player, trailing only Babe Ruth. The Giants retired his uniform number, 24, and named their AT&T Park plaza in San Francisco in his honor.
A Career Like None Before It
Player dies: The death of Hall of Fame center fielder, Willie Mays, created intense sadness over the Giants attempting to show respect for the Negro Leagues in a special game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Birmingham, Alabama’s Rickwood Field on June 12. “Willie Mays took his all-around brilliance from the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League to the historic Giants franchise,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said. Willie Salutes from coast to coast Willie inspired generations of players and fans as the game grew and truly became the National Pastime. ~MLB Official Press Release; Source: San Francisco Giants
Mays was one of the rare players who had an optimum combination of the five tools necessary for a true superstar: Hit-for-average, hit-for-power, speed, fielding, and throwing. No matter whether he was hitting home runs or streaking around the bases with his cap flying off or scooping up balls in center field, you could see the joy, brilliance and the fun in Mays.
The Next Best Moments and Titles
Mays, who played 23 seasons in the major leagues, the vast majority for the New York/San Francisco Giants, hit. 301, walloped 660 home runs, collected 3,293 hits, crossed the plate more than 2,000 times, and won 12 Gold Gloves. Rookie of the Year in 1951, a two-time MVP, and in the top 10 for MVP 10 other times. That over-the-shoulder catch in the 1954 World Series is still lauded as one of the classic defensive plays in baseball history.
Career high points: Four home runs against the Braves,The Catch and The Throw in ’54 World Series. “Once it was hit I knew I had to catch it,” Mays told his biographer James S. Hirsch. But the play saved a key run and was part of what eventually led to the Giants winning that World Series.
A Life Beyond Baseball
Mays was more than just a baseball great, he was a civil rights and cultural icon. He featured on national TV programs and was the model for songs. He was immortalized in Terry Cashman’s “Talkin’ Baseball (Willie, Mickey & The Duke),” the anthem to an era of New Yorkers who had three Hall of Fame center fielders on their own: Mays, Mickey Mantle of the Yankees, and Duke Snider of the Dodgers.
He faced personal (including racial) and professional challenges and was never paid as much with his endorsements as white athletes, but Mays loved the game. He took part in stickball games on the city streets and was very open for interactions with young fans.
Enduring Legacy
Willie Mays meant so much to baseball. A revolutionary African American athlete with widespread media attention, he was adored by fans and even more so off the field. In 2015, President Barack Obama awarded Mays the Medal of Freedom for a career leaving fans countless memories to remember.
Reminiscing on his playing days, Mays has said in past interviews, “I mean, you got the lights out there and all you do is go out there, and you’re out there by yourself in center field. I …it was such a beautiful game, and I just felt like, I want to play it forever, you know?
The era may have passed after the passing of Willie Mays, but his legend will forever inspire generations of MLB players and fans to come.
