Willie Mays
Encyclopedia
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. (born May 6, 1931) is a retired American professional
baseball
player who played the majority of his major league
career with the New York and San Francisco Giants
before finishing with the New York Mets
. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979
, his first year of eligibility. Many consider him to be the greatest all-around player of all time.
Mays won two MVP awards and tied Stan Musial
's record with 24 appearances in the All-Star Game
. He ended his career with 660 home run
s, third at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-time. An outstanding center fielder
, he won a record-tying twelve Gold Gloves starting the year the award was introduced six seasons into his career.
In 1999, Mays placed second on The Sporting News
' List of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, making him the highest-ranking living player. Later that year, he was also elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team
. Mays is one of five NL players to have eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons, along with Mel Ott
, Sammy Sosa
, Chipper Jones
and Albert Pujols
. Mays hit 50 or more home runs in both 1955 and 1965. This time span represents the longest stretch between 50 plus home run seasons for any player in Major League Baseball
history.
Ted Williams
once said "They invented the All-Star Game for Willie Mays."
. His father, who was named for president William Howard Taft
, was a talented baseball player with the Negro team for the local iron plant. His mother, Annie Satterwhite, was a gifted basketball and track star in high school. His parents never married each other. As a baby he was cared for by his mother's younger sisters Sarah and Ernestine. Sarah became the primary female role model in Mays' life. His father exposed him to baseball at an early age, and by the age of five he was playing catch with his father. At age 10, Mays was allowed to sit on the bench of his father's Industrial League games.
Mays was gifted in multiple sports, averaging a high-for-the-era 17 points a game for the Fairfield Industrial H.S. basketball
team, and more than 40 yards a punt in football
. He also starred at quarterback
. He graduated from Fairfield in 1950.
in Tennessee
during the summer, after school had let out. Shortly thereafter, Mays left the Choo-Choos, returned to his home state, and joined the Birmingham Black Barons
of the Negro American League
. Mays helped the Black Barons win their pennant and advance to the 1948 Negro League World Series
, where they lost 4 games to 1 to the Homestead Grays
. Mays hit just .226 for the season, but his excellent fielding and baserunning made him a useful player. However, by playing professionally with the Black Barons, Mays jeopardized his opportunities to play high school sports in Alabama state competition, and this created some problems for him with high school administration at Fairfield, which wanted him on their teams, to sell tickets and help teams win.
Over the next several years, a number of Major League baseball franchises sent scouts to watch him play. The first was the Boston Braves
. The scout who found him, Bud Maughn, referred him to the Braves, but they declined. Had the team taken an interest, the Braves franchise might have had Mays and Hank Aaron together in its outfield from 1954 to 1973. The Brooklyn Dodgers also scouted him, but concluded he could not hit the curve ball. Maughn then tipped a scout for the New York Giants, which signed Mays in 1950 and assigned him to their Class-B affiliate in Trenton, New Jersey
.
of the American Association
. During his short time span in Minneapolis, Mays played with two other future Hall of Famers, Hoyt Wilhelm
and Ray Dandridge
. Batting .477 in 35 games and playing excellent defense, Mays was called up to the Giants on May 24, 1951; he appeared in his first major league game the next day in Philadelphia. Mays moved to Harlem, New York, where his mentor was a New York State Boxing Commission official and former Harlem Rens basketball legend Frank "Strangler" Forbes.
s. On his thirteenth at bat, he hit a homer over the left field fence of the Polo Grounds
off future Hall of Famer
Warren Spahn
. Spahn later joked, "I'll never forgive myself. We might have gotten rid of Willie forever if I'd only struck him out." Mays' average improved steadily throughout the rest of the season. Although his .274 average, 68 RBI and 20 homers (in 121 games) were among the lowest of his career, he still won the 1951 Rookie of the Year Award
. During the Giants'
comeback in August and September 1951 to overtake the Dodgers
in the 1951 pennant race, Mays' fielding, and great arm were often instrumental to several important Giants victories. Mays ended the regular season in the on-deck circle when Bobby Thomson
hit the Shot Heard 'Round the World
against the Brooklyn Dodgers, to win the three-game playoff by 2 games to 1, after the teams had tied at the end of the regular season.
The Giants went on to meet the New York Yankees
in the 1951 World Series
. Mays was part of the first all African-American outfield in major league history, along with Hank Thompson
and Hall of Famer
Monte Irvin
in Game One of the 1951 World Series. Mays hit poorly, while the Giants lost the series four games to two. The six-game set was the only time that Mays and the aging Joe DiMaggio
would play on the same field.
Mays was a popular figure in Harlem. Magazine photographers were fond of chronicling his participation in local stickball games with kids. It was said that in the urban game of hitting a rubber ball with an adapted broomstick handle, Mays could hit a shot that measured "six sewers" (the distance of six consecutive NYC manhole covers, nearly 300 feet).
The United States Army
drafted
Mays in 1952, and he subsequently missed most of the 1952 season and all of the 1953 season. Despite the Korean War
, Mays spent most of his time in the army playing baseball at Fort Eustis, Virginia. Mays missed about 266 games due to military service.
Mays returned to the Giants in 1954
, hitting for a league-leading .345 batting average and slugging 41 home runs. Mays won the National League Most Valuable Player Award
and the Hickok Belt
as top professional athlete of the year. In addition, the Giants won the National League pennant
and the 1954 World Series
, sweeping the Cleveland Indians
in four games. The 1954 series is perhaps best remembered for "The Catch", an over-the-shoulder running grab by Mays in deep center field of the Polo Grounds of a long drive off the bat of Vic Wertz
during the eighth inning of Game 1. Considered the iconic image of Mays' playing career and one of baseball's most memorable fielding plays, the catch prevented two Indian runners from scoring, preserving a tie game. The Giants won the game in the 10th inning, with Mays scoring the winning run. The Giants went on to win the 1954 World Series, the New York Giants' last championship. 56 years later, the San Francisco Giants
won the World Series in 2010, their first after relocation.
Mays went on to perform at a high level each of the last three years the Giants were in New York. In 1956, he hit 36 homers and stole 40 bases, being only the second player and first National League player to join the "30-30 club
". In 1957, the first season the Gold Glove award was presented, he won the first of twelve consecutive Gold Glove Award
s. At the same time, Mays continued to finish in the NL's top five in a variety of offensive categories. Mays, Roberto Clemente
(also with twelve), Al Kaline
, Andruw Jones
, and Ken Griffey, Jr.
are the only outfielders to have ten or more career Gold Gloves. In 1957, Mays become the fourth player in Major League history to join the 20–20–20 club
(2B, 3B, HR), a feat no player had performed since 1941. Mays also stole 38 bases that year, making him only the second player in baseball history (after Frank Schulte in 1911) to reach 20 in each of those four categories (doubles, triples, homers, steals) in the same season.
. 1958 found Mays vying for the NL batting title, down to the final game of the season, just as in 1954. Mays collected three hits in the game, to finish with a career-high .347, but Philadelphia Phillies
' Richie Ashburn
won the title with a .350 average. In 1959 the Giants led by two games with only eight games to play, but could only win two of their remaining games and finished fourth, as their pitching staff collapsed due to overwork of their top hurlers. The Dodgers won the pennant following a playoff with the Milwaukee Braves. As he did in New York, Willie Mays would "play around" with kids playing sandlot ball in San Francisco. On three occasions, in 1959 or 1960, he visited Julius Kahn Playground, five blocks from where he lived, once with other Giants (Jim Davenport and Tom Haller).
Alvin Dark
was hired to manage the Giants before the start of the 1961 season, and named Mays team captain. The improving Giants finished '61 in third place and won 85 games, more than any of the previous six campaigns. Mays had one of his best games on April 30, 1961, hitting four home runs against the Milwaukee Braves in County Stadium. Mays went 4 for 5 at the plate and was on deck for a chance to hit a record fifth home run when the Giants' half of the ninth inning ended. Mays is the only Major Leaguer to have both a three-triple game and a four-HR game.
The Giants won the National League pennant in 1962, with Mays leading the team in eight offensive categories. The team finished the regular season in a tie for first place with the Los Angeles Dodgers
, and went on to win a three-game playoff series versus the Dodgers, advancing to play in the World Series
. The Giants lost to the Yankees
in seven games, and Mays hit just .250 with only two extra-base hits. It was his last World Series appearance as a member of the Giants.
In both the 1963 and 1964 seasons Mays batted in over 100 runs, and hit 85 total home runs. On July 2, 1963, Mays played in a game when future Hall of Fame
members Warren Spahn
and Juan Marichal
each threw 15 scoreless innings. In the bottom of the 16th inning, Mays hit a home run off Spahn for a 1–0 Giants victory.
Mays won his second MVP award in 1965 behind a career-high 52 home runs. He also hit career home run number 500 on September 13, 1965, off Don Nottebart
. Warren Spahn, off whom Mays hit his first career home run, was his teammate at the time. After the home run, Spahn greeted Mays in the dugout, asking "Was it anything like the same feeling?" Mays replied "It was exactly the same feeling. Same pitch, too." On August 22, 1965, Mays and Sandy Koufax
acted as peacemakers during a 14-minute brawl between the Giants and Dodgers after San Francisco pitcher Juan Marichal had bloodied Dodgers catcher John Roseboro with a bat.
Mays played in over 150 games for 13 consecutive years (a major-league record) from 1954 to 1966. In 1966, his last with 100 RBIs, Mays finished third in the NL MVP voting. It was the ninth and final time he finished in the top five in the voting for the award. In 1970, the Sporting News named Mays as the "Player of the Decade" for the 1960s.
Willie hit career home run No. 600 off San Diego's Mike Corkins in September 1969. Plagued by injuries that season, he managed only 13 home runs. Mays enjoyed a resurgence in 1970, hitting 28 homers and got off to a fast start in 1971, the year he turned 40. He had 15 home runs at the All-Star break, but faded down the stretch and finished with 18. Mays helped the Giants win the West division title that year, but they lost the NLCS to the Pittsburgh Pirates
.
During his time on the Giants, Mays was friends with fellow player Bobby Bonds
. When Bobby's son, Barry Bonds
, was born, Bobby asked Willie Mays to be Barry's godfather. Mays and the younger Bonds have maintained a close relationship ever since.
for pitcher Charlie Williams and $50,000 ($ today). At the time, the Giants franchise was losing money. Owner Horace Stoneham
could not guarantee Mays an income after retirement and the Mets offered Mays a position as a coach upon his retirement.
Mays had remained popular in New York long after the Giants had left for San Francisco, and the trade was seen as a public relations coup for the Mets. Mets owner Joan Whitney Payson
, who was a minority shareholder of the Giants when the team was in New York, had long desired to bring Mays back to his baseball roots, and was instrumental in making the trade. On May 14, 1972, in his Mets debut, Mays put New York ahead to stay with a fifth-inning home run against Don Carrithers
and his former team, the Giants, on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Shea Stadium
. Then on August 17, 1973, in a game against the Cincinnati Reds
with Don Gullett on the mound, Willie hit a fourth inning solo home run over the right center field fence. This was the 660th and last of his illustrious major league career.
Mays played a season and a half with the Mets before retiring, appearing in 133 games. The New York Mets honored him on September 25, 1973, (Willie Mays' Night) where he thanked the New York fans and said good-bye to America. He finished his career in the 1973 World Series
, which the Mets
lost to the Oakland Athletics
in seven games. Mays got the first hit of the Series, but had only seven at-bats (with two hits). He also fell down in the outfield during a play where he was hindered by the glare of the sun and by the hard outfield. Mays later said, "growing old is just a helpless hurt." In 1972 and 1973, Mays was the oldest regular position player in baseball. He became the oldest position player to appear in a World Series game.
Mays retired after the 1973 season with a lifetime batting average of .302 and 660 home runs. His lifetime total of 7,095 outfield fielding putouts remains the major league record.
Mays is the only Major League player to have hit a home run in every inning from the 1st through the 16th. He finished his career with a record 22 extra-inning home runs.
his famous basket catch.
On January 23, 1979, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. He garnered 409 of the 432 ballots cast (roughly 95 percent); referring to the other 23 voters, acerbic New York Daily News
columnist Dick Young
wrote, "If Jesus Christ were to show up with his old baseball glove, some guys wouldn't vote for him. He dropped the cross three times, didn't he?"
Mays took up golf
a few years after his promotion to the major leagues, and quickly became an accomplished player, playing to a handicap of about 4. After he retired, he played golf frequently in the San Francisco area.
Shortly after his Hall of Fame election, Mays took a job at the Park Place Casino (now Bally's Atlantic City
) in Atlantic City, New Jersey
. While there, he served as a Special Assistant to the Casino's President and as a greeter; Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle
was also a greeter during that time. When Baseball Commissioner
Bowie Kuhn
heard of this, he suspended both men from involvement in organized baseball for violating the league's rules on gambling. Peter Ueberroth
, Kuhn's successor, lifted the suspension in 1985.
Since 1986, Willie Mays has served as Special Assistant to the President of the San Francisco Giants. Mays' number 24 is retired by the San Francisco Giants. AT&T Park
, the Giants stadium, is located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza. In front of the main entrance to the stadium is a larger-than-life statue of Mays. He also serves on the advisory board of the Baseball Assistance Team
, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to helping former Major League, Minor League, and Negro league players through financial and medical difficulties.
In May 2009, Mays gave the commencement address to the graduating class of 2009 at San Francisco State University.
On February 10, 2010, Mays appeared on The Daily Show
, discussing his career and a new biography, Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend, by James S. Hirsch
.
Barry Bonds
tied him for third on the all-time home run list, Mays greeted and presented him with a diamond-studded Olympic torch (given to Mays for his role in carrying the Olympic Torch during its tour through the U.S.). In 1992, when Bonds signed a free agent contract with the Giants, Mays personally offered Bonds his retired #24 (the number Bonds wore in Pittsburgh
) but Bonds declined, electing to wear #25 instead, honoring his father Bobby Bonds
who wore #25 with the Giants.
Willie Mays Day was proclaimed by former mayor Willie Brown
and reaffirmed by mayor Gavin Newsom
to be every May 24 in San Francisco, paying tribute not only to his birth in the month (May 6), but also to his name (Mays) and jersey number (24). The date is also the anniversary of his call-up to the major leagues.
AT&T Park
is located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza.
On May 24, 2004, during the fifty-year anniversary of The Catch, Mays received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters degree from Yale University
.
On December 6, 2005, he was recognized for his accomplishments on and off the field when he received the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation
Lifetime Achievement Award.
On July 30, 2006 was the Tee Ball Commissioner at 2006 White House Tee Ball Initiative
http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2006/07/20060724-1.html
On June 10, 2007, Mays received an honorary doctorate
from Dartmouth College
.
At the 2007 All-Star Game
in San Francisco, Mays received a special tribute for his legendary contributions to the game, and threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
On December 5, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
and First Lady Maria Shriver
inducted Mays into the California Hall of Fame
, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts
.
On June 4, 2008, Community Board 10 in Harlem NYC, voted unanimously to name an 8 block service Road that connects to the Harlem River Drive from 155th Street to 163rd Street running adjacent to his beloved Polo Grounds—Willie Mays Drive.
On May 23, 2009, Mays received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from San Francisco State University
.
On July 14, 2009, he accompanied US President
Barack Obama
to St. Louis aboard Air Force One
for the Major League
All-Star Game
.
On March 19, 2010 he was inducted into the African-American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame
On May 6, 2010, on the occasion of his 79th birthday, Mays appeared on the floor of the California State Senate
where they proclaimed it Willie Mays Day in the state.
On May 15, 2010, Mays was awarded the MLB Beacon of Life Award at the Civil Rights game at Great American Ballpark.
The band Widespread Panic makes reference to Mays in the song One Arm Steve, from their album 'Til the Medicine Takes.
, on October 16. Among the players to play in that game were Willie Mays, Frank Robinson
, Hank Aaron, Elston Howard
, Monte Irvin
, Gene Baker
, Charlie Johnson, Sam Jones
, Hank Thompson, and Joe Black
.
: "Play Ball" and "My Son the Catcher" (both 1964) and "Calling Willie Mays" (1966). Also in 1966, he appeared in the "Twitch or Treat" episode of Bewitched
, in which Darrin Stephens asks if Mays is a witch, and Samantha Stephens replies, "The way he hits? What else?" In 1989, he appeared in My Two Dads
, in the episode "You Love Me, Right?", and in the episode "The Field" of Mr. Belvedere
. Additionally, he performed "Say Hey: The Willie Mays Song" on episode 4.46 of The Colgate Comedy Hour in 1954.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0563092/
, and is the godfather of all-time home run leader Barry Bonds
.
The other story is that Jimmy Cannon created the nickname because, when Mays arrived in the minors, he did not know everyone's name. "You see a guy, you say, 'Hey, man. Say hey, man,' " Mays said. "Ted [Williams] was the 'Splinter'. Joe [DiMaggio] was 'Joltin' Joe'. Stan [Musial] was 'The Man'. I guess I hit a few home runs, and they said there goes the 'Say Hey Kid.'"
Years before he became the "Say Hey Kid," when he began his professional career with the Black Barons, Willie was called "Buck" by team mates and fans. Some Giants players referred to him, their team captain, as "Cap."
Professional baseball
Baseball is a team sport which is played by several professional leagues throughout the world. In these leagues, and associated farm teams, players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system....
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
player who played the majority of his major league
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
career with the New York and San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
before finishing with the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979
Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 1979
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 1979 followed the system in place since 1978.The Baseball Writers Association of America voted by mail to select from recent major league players andelected Willie Mays....
, his first year of eligibility. Many consider him to be the greatest all-around player of all time.
Mays won two MVP awards and tied Stan Musial
Stan Musial
Stanley Frank "Stan" Musial is a retired professional baseball player who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals . Nicknamed "Stan the Man", Musial was a record 24-time All-Star selection , and is widely considered to be one of the greatest hitters in baseball...
's record with 24 appearances in the All-Star Game
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by a combination of fans, players, coaches, and managers...
. He ended his career with 660 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s, third at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-time. An outstanding center fielder
Center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball fielding position between left field and right field...
, he won a record-tying twelve Gold Gloves starting the year the award was introduced six seasons into his career.
In 1999, Mays placed second on The Sporting News
The Sporting News
Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
' List of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, making him the highest-ranking living player. Later that year, he was also elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team
Major League Baseball All-Century Team
In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest Major League Baseball players from the past century...
. Mays is one of five NL players to have eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons, along with Mel Ott
Mel Ott
Melvin Thomas Ott , nicknamed "Master Melvin", was a Major League Baseball right fielder. He played his entire career for the New York Giants . Ott was born in Gretna, Louisiana. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed...
, Sammy Sosa
Sammy Sosa
Samuel Peralta "Sammy" Sosa is a Dominican former professional baseball right fielder. Sosa played with four Major League Baseball teams over his career which spanned from 1989-2007....
, Chipper Jones
Chipper Jones
Larry Wayne "Chipper" Jones, Jr. is a Major League baseball player for the National League's Atlanta Braves. Although initially a shortstop, he has spent most of his career as the starting third baseman for the Braves...
and Albert Pujols
Albert Pujols
José Alberto Pujols Alcántara , better known as Albert Pujols , is a Dominican-American professional baseball player, who is currently a free agent...
. Mays hit 50 or more home runs in both 1955 and 1965. This time span represents the longest stretch between 50 plus home run seasons for any player in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
history.
Ted Williams
Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox...
once said "They invented the All-Star Game for Willie Mays."
Early life
Mays was born in Westfield, Alabama, just outside of Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
. His father, who was named for president William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
, was a talented baseball player with the Negro team for the local iron plant. His mother, Annie Satterwhite, was a gifted basketball and track star in high school. His parents never married each other. As a baby he was cared for by his mother's younger sisters Sarah and Ernestine. Sarah became the primary female role model in Mays' life. His father exposed him to baseball at an early age, and by the age of five he was playing catch with his father. At age 10, Mays was allowed to sit on the bench of his father's Industrial League games.
Mays was gifted in multiple sports, averaging a high-for-the-era 17 points a game for the Fairfield Industrial H.S. basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team, and more than 40 yards a punt in football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. He also starred at quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
. He graduated from Fairfield in 1950.
Negro leagues
Mays' professional baseball career began in 1947, when he was still in high school, when he played briefly with the Chattanooga Choo-ChoosChattanooga Choo-Choos
The Chattanooga Choo-Choos were a professional baseball team based in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The organization operated in the Negro Southern League, a minor league division of the Negro Major Leagues and fielded a team from until . The Choo-Choos played their home games at Engel Stadium...
in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
during the summer, after school had let out. Shortly thereafter, Mays left the Choo-Choos, returned to his home state, and joined the Birmingham Black Barons
Birmingham Black Barons
The Birmingham Black Barons played professional baseball for Birmingham, Alabama, in the Negro Leagues from 1920 to 1960 when the Major Leagues successfully integrated...
of the Negro American League
Negro American League
The Negro American League was one of the several Negro leagues which were created during the time organized baseball was segregated. The league was established in 1937, and continued to exist until 1960...
. Mays helped the Black Barons win their pennant and advance to the 1948 Negro League World Series
Negro League World Series
The Negro League World Series was a post-season baseball tournament which was held from 1924-1927 and from 1942-1948 between the champions of the Negro leagues, matching the mid-western winners against their east coast counterparts....
, where they lost 4 games to 1 to the Homestead Grays
Homestead Grays
The Homestead Grays were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and would remain in continuous operation for 38 seasons. The team was based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, adjacent to Pittsburgh.-Franchise...
. Mays hit just .226 for the season, but his excellent fielding and baserunning made him a useful player. However, by playing professionally with the Black Barons, Mays jeopardized his opportunities to play high school sports in Alabama state competition, and this created some problems for him with high school administration at Fairfield, which wanted him on their teams, to sell tickets and help teams win.
Over the next several years, a number of Major League baseball franchises sent scouts to watch him play. The first was the Boston Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
. The scout who found him, Bud Maughn, referred him to the Braves, but they declined. Had the team taken an interest, the Braves franchise might have had Mays and Hank Aaron together in its outfield from 1954 to 1973. The Brooklyn Dodgers also scouted him, but concluded he could not hit the curve ball. Maughn then tipped a scout for the New York Giants, which signed Mays in 1950 and assigned him to their Class-B affiliate in Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
.
Minor leagues
After Mays had a batting average of .353 in Trenton, N.J., he began the 1951 season with the class AAA Minneapolis MillersMinneapolis Millers
The Minneapolis Millers were an American professional minor league baseball team that played in Minneapolis, Minnesota, until 1960. In the 19th century a different Minneapolis Millers were part of the Western League.The team played first in Athletic Park and later Nicollet Park.The name Minneapolis...
of the American Association
American Association (20th century)
The American Association was a minor league baseball league at the Triple-A level of baseball in the United States from to and to . Together with the International League, it contested the Junior World Series which determined the championship team in minor league baseball, at least for the...
. During his short time span in Minneapolis, Mays played with two other future Hall of Famers, Hoyt Wilhelm
Hoyt Wilhelm
James Hoyt Wilhelm was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985....
and Ray Dandridge
Ray Dandridge
Raymond Emmitt Dandridge was an American third baseman in baseball's Negro leagues. He was born in Richmond, Virginia. Dandridge was one of the greatest fielders in the history of baseball, and one of the sport's greatest hitters for average, but unfortunately his name is not familiar to the...
. Batting .477 in 35 games and playing excellent defense, Mays was called up to the Giants on May 24, 1951; he appeared in his first major league game the next day in Philadelphia. Mays moved to Harlem, New York, where his mentor was a New York State Boxing Commission official and former Harlem Rens basketball legend Frank "Strangler" Forbes.
New York Giants (1951–57)
Mays began his major league career with no hits in his first twelve at batAt bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...
s. On his thirteenth at bat, he hit a homer over the left field fence of the Polo Grounds
Polo Grounds
The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
off future Hall of Famer
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
Warren Spahn
Warren Spahn
Warren Edward Spahn was an American Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in the National League. He won 20 games each in 13 seasons, including a 23-7 record when he was age 42...
. Spahn later joked, "I'll never forgive myself. We might have gotten rid of Willie forever if I'd only struck him out." Mays' average improved steadily throughout the rest of the season. Although his .274 average, 68 RBI and 20 homers (in 121 games) were among the lowest of his career, he still won the 1951 Rookie of the Year Award
MLB Rookie of the Year Award
In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers Association of America . The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946...
. During the Giants'
1951 New York Giants (MLB) season
The New York Giants season saw the Giants finish the regular season in a tie for first place in the National League with a record of 96 wins and 58 losses. This prompted a three-game playoff against the Brooklyn Dodgers, which the Giants won in three games, clinched by Bobby Thomson's walk-off...
comeback in August and September 1951 to overtake the Dodgers
1951 Brooklyn Dodgers season
The Brooklyn Dodgers led the National League for much of the season, holding a 13 game lead as late as August. However, a late season swoon and a hot streak by the New York Giants led to a classic three-game playoff series...
in the 1951 pennant race, Mays' fielding, and great arm were often instrumental to several important Giants victories. Mays ended the regular season in the on-deck circle when Bobby Thomson
Bobby Thomson
Robert Brown "Bobby" Thomson was a Scottish-born American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "The Staten Island Scot", he was an outfielder and right-handed batter for the New York Giants , Milwaukee Braves , Chicago Cubs , Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles .His season-ending three-run...
hit the Shot Heard 'Round the World
Shot Heard 'Round the World (baseball)
In baseball, the "Shot Heard 'round the World" is the term given to the walk-off home run hit by New York Giants outfielder Bobby Thomson off Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca at the Polo Grounds to win the National League pennant at 3:58 p.m...
against the Brooklyn Dodgers, to win the three-game playoff by 2 games to 1, after the teams had tied at the end of the regular season.
1951 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees season was the 49th season for the team in New York, and its 51st season overall. The team finished with a record of 98-56, winning their 18th pennant, finishing five games ahead of the Cleveland Indians. New York was managed by Casey Stengel. The Yankees played at Yankee...
in the 1951 World Series
1951 World Series
The 1951 World Series matched the two-time defending champion New York Yankees against the New York Giants, who had won the National League pennant in a thrilling three-game playoff with the Brooklyn Dodgers on the legendary home run by Bobby Thomson .In the Series, the Yankees showed some power of...
. Mays was part of the first all African-American outfield in major league history, along with Hank Thompson
Hank Thompson (baseball player)
Henry Curtis Thompson , best known as Hank Thompson, was an American player in the Negro Leagues and Major League Baseball who played primarily as a third baseman. A left-handed batter, he played with the Kansas City Monarchs , St. Louis Browns and New York Giants...
and Hall of Famer
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
Monte Irvin
Monte Irvin
Monford Merrill "Monte" Irvin is a former left fielder and right-handed batter in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball who played with the Newark Eagles , New York Giants and Chicago Cubs .-Biography:Although born in Haleburg, Alabama, Irvin grew up in Orange, New Jersey, one of five...
in Game One of the 1951 World Series. Mays hit poorly, while the Giants lost the series four games to two. The six-game set was the only time that Mays and the aging Joe DiMaggio
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul "Joe" DiMaggio , nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper," was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak , a record that still stands...
would play on the same field.
Mays was a popular figure in Harlem. Magazine photographers were fond of chronicling his participation in local stickball games with kids. It was said that in the urban game of hitting a rubber ball with an adapted broomstick handle, Mays could hit a shot that measured "six sewers" (the distance of six consecutive NYC manhole covers, nearly 300 feet).
The United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
drafted
Conscription in the United States
Conscription in the United States has been employed several times, usually during war but also during the nominal peace of the Cold War...
Mays in 1952, and he subsequently missed most of the 1952 season and all of the 1953 season. Despite the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, Mays spent most of his time in the army playing baseball at Fort Eustis, Virginia. Mays missed about 266 games due to military service.
Mays returned to the Giants in 1954
1954 Major League Baseball season
For the second consecutive season, an MLB franchise relocated, as the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore and became the Baltimore Orioles, who played their home games at Memorial Stadium.-World series:NL New York Giants vs...
, hitting for a league-leading .345 batting average and slugging 41 home runs. Mays won the National League Most Valuable Player Award
MLB Most Valuable Player Award
The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award is an annual Major League Baseball award, given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America...
and the Hickok Belt
Hickok Belt
The S. Rae Hickok Professional Athlete of the Year award, known as the Hickok Belt, was a trophy awarded for 27 years to the top professional athlete of the year in the United States...
as top professional athlete of the year. In addition, the Giants won the National League pennant
National League pennant winners 1901-68
Each season in Major League Baseball, the National League team with the best performance wins the league's pennant, signifying that they are its champion and winning the right to play in the World Series. In addition to the pennant, the team that wins the National League playoffs receives the...
and the 1954 World Series
1954 World Series
The 1954 World Series matched the National League champion New York Giants against the American League champion Cleveland Indians. The Giants swept the Series in four games to win their first championship since , defeating the heavily favored Indians, who had won an AL-record 111 games in the...
, sweeping the Cleveland Indians
1954 Cleveland Indians season
The Cleveland Indians advanced to the World Series for the first time in six years. It was the team's third American League championship in franchise history...
in four games. The 1954 series is perhaps best remembered for "The Catch", an over-the-shoulder running grab by Mays in deep center field of the Polo Grounds of a long drive off the bat of Vic Wertz
Vic Wertz
Victor Woodrow Wertz was a Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder. He had a seventeen year career from 1947 to 1963. He was signed as a free agent by the Detroit Tigers in 1942 and played for the Tigers, St...
during the eighth inning of Game 1. Considered the iconic image of Mays' playing career and one of baseball's most memorable fielding plays, the catch prevented two Indian runners from scoring, preserving a tie game. The Giants won the game in the 10th inning, with Mays scoring the winning run. The Giants went on to win the 1954 World Series, the New York Giants' last championship. 56 years later, the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
won the World Series in 2010, their first after relocation.
Mays went on to perform at a high level each of the last three years the Giants were in New York. In 1956, he hit 36 homers and stole 40 bases, being only the second player and first National League player to join the "30-30 club
30-30 club
The 30–30 club is a grouping of Major League Baseball players who have reached the 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases plateaus in the same season....
". In 1957, the first season the Gold Glove award was presented, he won the first of twelve consecutive Gold Glove Award
Gold Glove Award
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League and the American League , as voted by the...
s. At the same time, Mays continued to finish in the NL's top five in a variety of offensive categories. Mays, Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente Walker was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball right fielder. He was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the youngest of seven children. Clemente played his entire 18-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He was awarded the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in...
(also with twelve), Al Kaline
Al Kaline
Albert William "Al" Kaline is a former Major League Baseball right fielder. He is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Kaline played his entire 22-year baseball career with the Detroit Tigers. Kaline still works for the Tigers as a front office official. Because of his lengthy career and...
, Andruw Jones
Andruw Jones
Andruw Rudolf Jones is a Major League Baseball outfielder who is a free agent.Jones made his debut during the 1996 season. In the 1996 World Series, Jones became the youngest player to ever homered in the postseason...
, and Ken Griffey, Jr.
Ken Griffey, Jr.
George Kenneth "Ken" Griffey, Jr. , nicknamed "Junior" and "The Kid", is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and during his final years, designated hitter...
are the only outfielders to have ten or more career Gold Gloves. In 1957, Mays become the fourth player in Major League history to join the 20–20–20 club
20–20–20 club
The 20–20–20 club is a term coined by sportswriters that describes a fairly exclusive group of Major League Baseball players: those who have reached the 20 double, 20 triple, and 20 home run plateaus in the same season...
(2B, 3B, HR), a feat no player had performed since 1941. Mays also stole 38 bases that year, making him only the second player in baseball history (after Frank Schulte in 1911) to reach 20 in each of those four categories (doubles, triples, homers, steals) in the same season.
San Francisco Giants (1958–72)
After the 1957 season, the Giants franchise and Mays relocated to San Francisco, California. Mays bought two homes in San Francisco, then lived in nearby AthertonAtherton, California
Atherton is an incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States. Its population was 6,914 at the 2010 census. In September 2010, Forbes magazine placed Atherton's zip code of 94027 at #2 on its annual list of America's most expensive zip codes, with a median home price of $4,010,200...
. 1958 found Mays vying for the NL batting title, down to the final game of the season, just as in 1954. Mays collected three hits in the game, to finish with a career-high .347, but Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
' Richie Ashburn
Richie Ashburn
Don Richard "Richie" Ashburn , also known by the nicknames, "Putt-Putt", "The Tilden Flash", and "Whitey" due to his light-blond hair, was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball. He was born in Tilden, Nebraska...
won the title with a .350 average. In 1959 the Giants led by two games with only eight games to play, but could only win two of their remaining games and finished fourth, as their pitching staff collapsed due to overwork of their top hurlers. The Dodgers won the pennant following a playoff with the Milwaukee Braves. As he did in New York, Willie Mays would "play around" with kids playing sandlot ball in San Francisco. On three occasions, in 1959 or 1960, he visited Julius Kahn Playground, five blocks from where he lived, once with other Giants (Jim Davenport and Tom Haller).
Alvin Dark
Alvin Dark
Alvin Ralph Dark , nicknamed "Blackie" and "The Swamp Fox", is a former shortstop and manager in Major League Baseball who played for five National League teams from 1946 to 1960. Named the major leagues' Rookie of the Year with the Boston Braves when he batted .322...
was hired to manage the Giants before the start of the 1961 season, and named Mays team captain. The improving Giants finished '61 in third place and won 85 games, more than any of the previous six campaigns. Mays had one of his best games on April 30, 1961, hitting four home runs against the Milwaukee Braves in County Stadium. Mays went 4 for 5 at the plate and was on deck for a chance to hit a record fifth home run when the Giants' half of the ninth inning ended. Mays is the only Major Leaguer to have both a three-triple game and a four-HR game.
The Giants won the National League pennant in 1962, with Mays leading the team in eight offensive categories. The team finished the regular season in a tie for first place with the Los Angeles Dodgers
1962 Los Angeles Dodgers season
The Los Angeles Dodgers season was the fifth for the team in Southern California, and the 73rd for the franchise in the National League. After spending the previous four seasons at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, they began the season by opening Dodger Stadium, the team's new ballpark. The...
, and went on to win a three-game playoff series versus the Dodgers, advancing to play in the World Series
1962 World Series
The 1962 World Series matched the defending American League and World Series champions New York Yankees against the National League champion San Francisco Giants, who had won their first NL pennant since 1954 and first since moving from New York in 1958, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in a...
. The Giants lost to the Yankees
1962 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees season was the 60th season for the team in New York, and its 62nd season overall. The team finished with a record of 96-66, winning their 27th pennant, finishing 5 games ahead of the Minnesota Twins. New York was managed by Ralph Houk. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium...
in seven games, and Mays hit just .250 with only two extra-base hits. It was his last World Series appearance as a member of the Giants.
In both the 1963 and 1964 seasons Mays batted in over 100 runs, and hit 85 total home runs. On July 2, 1963, Mays played in a game when future Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
members Warren Spahn
Warren Spahn
Warren Edward Spahn was an American Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in the National League. He won 20 games each in 13 seasons, including a 23-7 record when he was age 42...
and Juan Marichal
Juan Marichal
Juan Antonio Marichal Sánchez is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. Playing for the San Francisco Giants most of his career, Marichal was known for his high leg kick, pinpoint control and intimidation tactics, which included aiming pitches directly at the opposing batters'...
each threw 15 scoreless innings. In the bottom of the 16th inning, Mays hit a home run off Spahn for a 1–0 Giants victory.
Mays won his second MVP award in 1965 behind a career-high 52 home runs. He also hit career home run number 500 on September 13, 1965, off Don Nottebart
Don Nottebart
Donald Edward Nottebart was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for five teams from 1960 to 1969. Primarily a reliever, he spent the 1963 to 1965 seasons as a starter with the Houston Colt .45s/Astros, and threw the first no-hitter in franchise history in 1963...
. Warren Spahn, off whom Mays hit his first career home run, was his teammate at the time. After the home run, Spahn greeted Mays in the dugout, asking "Was it anything like the same feeling?" Mays replied "It was exactly the same feeling. Same pitch, too." On August 22, 1965, Mays and Sandy Koufax
Sandy Koufax
Sanford "Sandy" Koufax is a former left-handed baseball pitcher who played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers...
acted as peacemakers during a 14-minute brawl between the Giants and Dodgers after San Francisco pitcher Juan Marichal had bloodied Dodgers catcher John Roseboro with a bat.
Mays played in over 150 games for 13 consecutive years (a major-league record) from 1954 to 1966. In 1966, his last with 100 RBIs, Mays finished third in the NL MVP voting. It was the ninth and final time he finished in the top five in the voting for the award. In 1970, the Sporting News named Mays as the "Player of the Decade" for the 1960s.
Willie hit career home run No. 600 off San Diego's Mike Corkins in September 1969. Plagued by injuries that season, he managed only 13 home runs. Mays enjoyed a resurgence in 1970, hitting 28 homers and got off to a fast start in 1971, the year he turned 40. He had 15 home runs at the All-Star break, but faded down the stretch and finished with 18. Mays helped the Giants win the West division title that year, but they lost the NLCS to the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
.
During his time on the Giants, Mays was friends with fellow player Bobby Bonds
Bobby Bonds
Bobby Lee Bonds was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball from to , primarily with the San Francisco Giants...
. When Bobby's son, Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...
, was born, Bobby asked Willie Mays to be Barry's godfather. Mays and the younger Bonds have maintained a close relationship ever since.
New York Mets (1972–73)
In May 1972, the 41-year-old Mays was traded to the New York MetsNew York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
for pitcher Charlie Williams and $50,000 ($ today). At the time, the Giants franchise was losing money. Owner Horace Stoneham
Horace Stoneham
Horace C. Stoneham was the principal owner of Major League Baseball's New York/San Francisco Giants from the death of his father, Charles Stoneham, in 1936 until 1976. During his ownership, the team won National League pennants in 1936, 1937, 1951, 1954 and 1962, a division title in 1971, and a...
could not guarantee Mays an income after retirement and the Mets offered Mays a position as a coach upon his retirement.
Mays had remained popular in New York long after the Giants had left for San Francisco, and the trade was seen as a public relations coup for the Mets. Mets owner Joan Whitney Payson
Joan Whitney Payson
Joan Whitney Payson was an American heiress, businesswoman, philanthropist, patron of the arts and art collector, and a member of the prominent Whitney family...
, who was a minority shareholder of the Giants when the team was in New York, had long desired to bring Mays back to his baseball roots, and was instrumental in making the trade. On May 14, 1972, in his Mets debut, Mays put New York ahead to stay with a fifth-inning home run against Don Carrithers
Don Carrithers
Donald George Carrithers is a former professional baseball pitcher. Carrithers pitched in all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball from 1970 until 1977....
and his former team, the Giants, on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...
. Then on August 17, 1973, in a game against the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
with Don Gullett on the mound, Willie hit a fourth inning solo home run over the right center field fence. This was the 660th and last of his illustrious major league career.
Mays played a season and a half with the Mets before retiring, appearing in 133 games. The New York Mets honored him on September 25, 1973, (Willie Mays' Night) where he thanked the New York fans and said good-bye to America. He finished his career in the 1973 World Series
1973 World Series
The 1973 World Series matched the defending champion Oakland Athletics against the New York Mets, with the A's winning in seven games to repeat as World Champions....
, which the Mets
1973 New York Mets season
The New York Mets season was the 12th regular season for the Mets, who played home games at Shea Stadium. Manager Yogi Berra led the team to a National League East title with an 82–79 record, the National League pennant and a defeat at the hands of the Oakland Athletics in the World Series...
lost to the Oakland Athletics
1973 Oakland Athletics season
The Oakland Athletics season involved the A's winning their third consecutive American League West title with a record of 94 wins and 68 losses...
in seven games. Mays got the first hit of the Series, but had only seven at-bats (with two hits). He also fell down in the outfield during a play where he was hindered by the glare of the sun and by the hard outfield. Mays later said, "growing old is just a helpless hurt." In 1972 and 1973, Mays was the oldest regular position player in baseball. He became the oldest position player to appear in a World Series game.
Mays retired after the 1973 season with a lifetime batting average of .302 and 660 home runs. His lifetime total of 7,095 outfield fielding putouts remains the major league record.
Mays is the only Major League player to have hit a home run in every inning from the 1st through the 16th. He finished his career with a record 22 extra-inning home runs.
Post-playing days
After Mays stopped playing baseball, he remained an active personality. Just as he had during his playing days, Mays continued to appear on various TV shows, in films, and in other forms of non-sports related media. He remained in the New York Mets organization as their hitting instructor until the end of the 1979 season. It was there where he taught future Mets' star Lee MazzilliLee Mazzilli
Lee Louis Mazzilli, , is a former Major League Baseball player, coach, and manager. On December 11, 2006, he was hired as the lead studio analyst for SportsNet New York, the New York Mets' cable television network...
his famous basket catch.
On January 23, 1979, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. He garnered 409 of the 432 ballots cast (roughly 95 percent); referring to the other 23 voters, acerbic New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
columnist Dick Young
Dick Young (sportswriter)
Dick Young was a sportswriter best known for his direct and abrasive style, and his 45-year association with the New York Daily News...
wrote, "If Jesus Christ were to show up with his old baseball glove, some guys wouldn't vote for him. He dropped the cross three times, didn't he?"
Mays took up golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
a few years after his promotion to the major leagues, and quickly became an accomplished player, playing to a handicap of about 4. After he retired, he played golf frequently in the San Francisco area.
Shortly after his Hall of Fame election, Mays took a job at the Park Place Casino (now Bally's Atlantic City
Bally's Atlantic City
Bally's Atlantic City is a luxury hotel and casino on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey that opened in 1979. It is one of the largest casinos on the boardwalk with nearly 2,000 rooms. Bally's is unique in that two of its four hotel towers are at least 80 years old. The Claridge Tower was...
) in Atlantic City, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. While there, he served as a Special Assistant to the Casino's President and as a greeter; Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle
Mickey Mantle
Mickey Charles Mantle was an American professional baseball player. Mantle is regarded by many to be the greatest switch hitter of all time, and one of the greatest players in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.Mantle was noted for his hitting...
was also a greeter during that time. When Baseball Commissioner
Baseball Commissioner
The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. Under the direction of the Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts...
Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kent Kuhn was an American lawyer and sports administrator who served as the fifth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from February 4, , to September 30,...
heard of this, he suspended both men from involvement in organized baseball for violating the league's rules on gambling. Peter Ueberroth
Peter Ueberroth
Peter Victor Ueberroth is an American executive. He served as the sixth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1984 to 1989. He was recently the chairman of the United States Olympic Committee; he was replaced by Larry Probst in October 2008....
, Kuhn's successor, lifted the suspension in 1985.
Since 1986, Willie Mays has served as Special Assistant to the President of the San Francisco Giants. Mays' number 24 is retired by the San Francisco Giants. AT&T Park
AT&T Park
AT&T Park is a ballpark located in the South Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza, at the corner of Third and King Streets, it has served as the home of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball since 2000....
, the Giants stadium, is located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza. In front of the main entrance to the stadium is a larger-than-life statue of Mays. He also serves on the advisory board of the Baseball Assistance Team
Baseball Assistance Team
The Baseball Assistance Team is a 501 non-profit affiliated with Major League Baseball. The organization's stated goal is to "help members of the baseball family who have come on hard times and are in need of assistance," and is guided by the principles of teamwork, caring, and sharing...
, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to helping former Major League, Minor League, and Negro league players through financial and medical difficulties.
In May 2009, Mays gave the commencement address to the graduating class of 2009 at San Francisco State University.
On February 10, 2010, Mays appeared on The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
, discussing his career and a new biography, Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend, by James S. Hirsch
James S. Hirsch
James S. Hirsch is an American journalist and best-selling author who has written extensively about sports, race, and American culture and whose most recent book is the first authorized biography of Willie Mays...
.
Special honors, tributes, and recognitions
When Mays' godsonGodson
Loongson is a family of general-purpose MIPS-compatible CPUs developed at the Institute of Computing Technology , Chinese Academy of Sciences in the People's Republic of China. The chief architect is Professor Hu Weiwu....
Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...
tied him for third on the all-time home run list, Mays greeted and presented him with a diamond-studded Olympic torch (given to Mays for his role in carrying the Olympic Torch during its tour through the U.S.). In 1992, when Bonds signed a free agent contract with the Giants, Mays personally offered Bonds his retired #24 (the number Bonds wore in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
) but Bonds declined, electing to wear #25 instead, honoring his father Bobby Bonds
Bobby Bonds
Bobby Lee Bonds was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball from to , primarily with the San Francisco Giants...
who wore #25 with the Giants.
Willie Mays Day was proclaimed by former mayor Willie Brown
Willie Brown (politician)
Willie Lewis Brown, Jr. is an American politician of the Democratic Party. He served over 30 years in the California State Assembly, spending 15 years as its Speaker, and afterward served as the 41st mayor of San Francisco, the first African American to do so...
and reaffirmed by mayor Gavin Newsom
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician who is the 49th and current Lieutenant Governor of California. Previously, he was the 42nd Mayor of San Francisco, and was elected in 2003 to succeed Willie Brown, becoming San Francisco's youngest mayor in 100 years. Newsom was re-elected in 2007...
to be every May 24 in San Francisco, paying tribute not only to his birth in the month (May 6), but also to his name (Mays) and jersey number (24). The date is also the anniversary of his call-up to the major leagues.
AT&T Park
AT&T Park
AT&T Park is a ballpark located in the South Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza, at the corner of Third and King Streets, it has served as the home of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball since 2000....
is located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza.
On May 24, 2004, during the fifty-year anniversary of The Catch, Mays received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters degree from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
.
On December 6, 2005, he was recognized for his accomplishments on and off the field when he received the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation
Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation
The Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation was created by Bobby Bragan, who has worked since 1992 to motivate the youth of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex to become better scholars, citizens, and athletes, and to serve as leaders and role models for their peers....
Lifetime Achievement Award.
On July 30, 2006 was the Tee Ball Commissioner at 2006 White House Tee Ball Initiative
White House Tee Ball Initiative
White House Tee Ball Initiative refers to efforts by President George W. Bush to promote baseball and softball by allowing youth Tee Ball events on the grounds of the White House in Washington, D.C.. The event was first held in 2001....
http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2006/07/20060724-1.html
On June 10, 2007, Mays received an honorary doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
from Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
.
At the 2007 All-Star Game
2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 78th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 10, 2007, at AT&T Park, the home of the NL's San Francisco Giants...
in San Francisco, Mays received a special tribute for his legendary contributions to the game, and threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
On December 5, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
and First Lady Maria Shriver
Maria Shriver
Maria Owings Shriver is an American journalist and author of six best-selling books. She has received a Peabody Award, and was co-anchor for NBC's Emmy-winning coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics. As executive producer of The Alzheimer's Project, Shriver earned two Emmy Awards and an Academy of...
inducted Mays into the California Hall of Fame
California Hall of Fame
Conceived by First Lady Maria Shriver, the California Hall of Fame was established at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts to honor individuals and families who embody California’s innovative spirit and have made their mark on history...
, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts
The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts
The California Museum, formerly The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts – home of the California Hall of Fame – is housed in the State Archives Building in Sacramento, one block from the State Capitol...
.
On June 4, 2008, Community Board 10 in Harlem NYC, voted unanimously to name an 8 block service Road that connects to the Harlem River Drive from 155th Street to 163rd Street running adjacent to his beloved Polo Grounds—Willie Mays Drive.
On May 23, 2009, Mays received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
.
On July 14, 2009, he accompanied US President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
to St. Louis aboard Air Force One
Air Force One
Air Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. In common parlance the term refers to those Air Force aircraft whose primary mission is to transport the president; however, any U.S. Air Force aircraft...
for the Major League
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
All-Star Game
2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 80th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 14, 2009, at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, the home of the...
.
On March 19, 2010 he was inducted into the African-American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame
On May 6, 2010, on the occasion of his 79th birthday, Mays appeared on the floor of the California State Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
where they proclaimed it Willie Mays Day in the state.
On May 15, 2010, Mays was awarded the MLB Beacon of Life Award at the Civil Rights game at Great American Ballpark.
The band Widespread Panic makes reference to Mays in the song One Arm Steve, from their album 'Til the Medicine Takes.
1956 Willie Mays Major League Negro-American All-Stars Tour
In 1956, Mays got many of Major League Baseball's biggest black stars to go on a tour around the country after the season had ended to play exhibition games. While much of the tour has gone undocumented, one venue the tour made a stop in was Andrews Field, located in Fort Smith, ArkansasFort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith is the second-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. With a population of 86,209 in 2010, it is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area, a region of 298,592 residents which encompasses the Arkansas...
, on October 16. Among the players to play in that game were Willie Mays, Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson , is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He played from 1956–1976, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He is the only player to win league MVP honors in both the National and American Leagues...
, Hank Aaron, Elston Howard
Elston Howard
Elston Gene Howard was an American Negro League and Major League Baseball catcher, left fielder and coach. During a 14-year baseball career, he played from 1955–1968, primarily for the New York Yankees...
, Monte Irvin
Monte Irvin
Monford Merrill "Monte" Irvin is a former left fielder and right-handed batter in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball who played with the Newark Eagles , New York Giants and Chicago Cubs .-Biography:Although born in Haleburg, Alabama, Irvin grew up in Orange, New Jersey, one of five...
, Gene Baker
Gene Baker
Eugene Walter Baker was an American Major League Baseball player. A native of Davenport, Iowa, he primary played second base for the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was selected for the National League All Star game in 1955. He played eight seasons from 1953 to 1958 and 1960 to 1961,...
, Charlie Johnson, Sam Jones
Sam Jones (baseball)
Samuel Jones , known during his career as "Toothpick Sam" Jones or "Sad Sam" Jones, was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played from to ....
, Hank Thompson, and Joe Black
Joe Black
Joseph Black was an American right-handed pitcher in Negro League and Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Cincinnati Redlegs, and Washington Senators who became the first black pitcher to win a World Series game, in 1952. Black died of prostate cancer at age 78.A native of Plainfield,...
.
Television appearances
In addition to appearances in baseball documentaries and on talk shows, Mays has appeared in several sitcoms over the years, always as himself. He was in three episodes of The Donna Reed ShowThe Donna Reed Show
The Donna Reed Show is an American sitcom starring Donna Reed as the upper middle class housewife Donna Stone. Carl Betz appears as her pediatrician husband Alex, and Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen as their teenage children Mary and Jeff. The show originally aired on ABC at 10 pm from September...
: "Play Ball" and "My Son the Catcher" (both 1964) and "Calling Willie Mays" (1966). Also in 1966, he appeared in the "Twitch or Treat" episode of Bewitched
Bewitched
Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Dick Sargent , Agnes Moorehead, and David White. The show is about a witch who marries a mortal and tries to lead the life of a typical suburban...
, in which Darrin Stephens asks if Mays is a witch, and Samantha Stephens replies, "The way he hits? What else?" In 1989, he appeared in My Two Dads
My Two Dads
My Two Dads is an American sitcom that starred Staci Keanan, Paul Reiser and Greg Evigan. It aired on NBC from 1987 to 1990 and was produced by Michael Jacobs Productions in association with TriStar Television and distributed by TeleVentures.-Show synopsis:The show begins when Marcy Bradford , the...
, in the episode "You Love Me, Right?", and in the episode "The Field" of Mr. Belvedere
Mr. Belvedere
Mr. Belvedere is an American sitcom that originally aired on ABC from March 15, 1985, until July 8, 1990. The series was based on the Lynn Aloysius Belvedere character created by Gwen Davenport for her 1947 novel Belvedere, which was later adapted into the 1948 film Sitting Pretty...
. Additionally, he performed "Say Hey: The Willie Mays Song" on episode 4.46 of The Colgate Comedy Hour in 1954.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0563092/
Personal life
Mays married Margherite Wendell Chapman (1926–2010) in 1956, and they adopted Michael, who was born in 1959. The couple divorced in 1962 or 1963, varying by source. In November 1971, Mays married Mae Louise Allen. He was a close friend of teammate Bobby BondsBobby Bonds
Bobby Lee Bonds was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball from to , primarily with the San Francisco Giants...
, and is the godfather of all-time home run leader Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...
.
"Say Hey Kid" and other nicknames
It is not clear how Mays became known as the "Say Hey Kid". One story is that in 1951, Barney Kremenko, a writer for the New York Journal, having overheard Mays blurt "'Say who,' 'Say what,' 'Say where,' 'Say hey,'" proceeded to refer to Mays as the 'Say Hey Kid'.The other story is that Jimmy Cannon created the nickname because, when Mays arrived in the minors, he did not know everyone's name. "You see a guy, you say, 'Hey, man. Say hey, man,' " Mays said. "Ted [Williams] was the 'Splinter'. Joe [DiMaggio] was 'Joltin' Joe'. Stan [Musial] was 'The Man'. I guess I hit a few home runs, and they said there goes the 'Say Hey Kid.'"
Years before he became the "Say Hey Kid," when he began his professional career with the Black Barons, Willie was called "Buck" by team mates and fans. Some Giants players referred to him, their team captain, as "Cap."
See also
- Bay Area Sports Hall of FameBay Area Sports Hall of FameThe Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame honors sports figures who have made a significant impact in the San Francisco Bay Area. The organization is a section 501 non-profit, that was created by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce in 1979.-Inductees:...
- 500 home run club500 home run clubIn Major League Baseball , the 500 home run club is a term applied to the group of batters who have hit 500 or more regular-season home runs in their careers. On August 11, 1929, Babe Ruth became the first member of the club. Ruth ended his career with 714 home runs, a record which stood from 1935...
- List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
- List of top 300 Major League Baseball home run hitters
- List of major league players with 2,000 hits
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
- List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBIs
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
- 3000 hit club3000 hit clubIn Major League Baseball , the 3,000 hit club is a term applied to the group of batters who have collected 3,000 or more regular-season hits in their careers. Cap Anson was the first to join the club on July 18, 1897, although his precise career hit total is unclear. Two players—Nap Lajoie and...
- 30-30 club30-30 clubThe 30–30 club is a grouping of Major League Baseball players who have reached the 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases plateaus in the same season....
- 20–20–20 club20–20–20 clubThe 20–20–20 club is a term coined by sportswriters that describes a fairly exclusive group of Major League Baseball players: those who have reached the 20 double, 20 triple, and 20 home run plateaus in the same season...
- 50 home run club50 home run clubIn Major League Baseball, the 50 home run club is an informal term applied to the group of players who have hit 50 or more home runs in a single season. The 50 Home Run Club was "founded" by Babe Ruth in 1920...
- List of Major League Baseball batting champions
- List of Major League Baseball home run champions
- List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
- List of Major League Baseball stolen base champions
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
- Batters with four home runs in one game
- Major League Baseball titles leadersMajor League Baseball titles leadersAt the end of each Major League Baseball season, the league leaders of various statistical categories are announced. Leading the league in a particular category is referred to as a title....