The beloved center fielder, one of the most popular players ever, hit 660 home runs in his career and was the oldest living Hall of Famer.
The San Francisco Giants’ Willie Mays poses for a photo during baseball spring training in 1972. Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays’ family and the San Francisco Giants jointly announced Tuesday night, June 18, 2024, he had “passed away peacefully” Tuesday afternoon surrounded by loved ones.
FILE – San Francisco Giants center fielder Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants is shown in 1966. Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays’ family and the San Francisco Giants jointly announced Tuesday night, June 18, 2024, he had “passed away peacefully” Tuesday afternoon surrounded by loved ones.
FILE – This is a 1955 file photo showing New York Giants baseball player Willie Mays. Mays turns 90 on Thursday, May 6, 2021. “My father has passed away peacefully and among loved ones,” son Michael Mays said in a statement released by the club. “I want to thank you all from the bottom of my broken heart for the unwavering love you have shown him over the years. You have been his life’s blood.”
Few were so blessed with each of the five essential qualities for a superstar – hitting for average, hitting for power, speed, fielding and throwing. Fewer so joyously exerted those qualities – whether launching home runs; dashing around the bases, loose-fitting cap flying off his head; or chasing down fly balls in center field and finishing the job with his trademark basket catch.
In Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, the then-New York Giants hosted the Cleveland Indians, who had won 111 games in the regular season and were strong favorites in the postseason. The score was 2-2 in the top of the eighth inning. Cleveland’s Vic Wertz faced reliever Don Liddle with none out, Larry Doby on second and Al Rosen on first.
“All the time I’m running back, I’m thinking, ‘Willie, you’ve got to get this ball back to the infield.’” “I am beyond devastated and overcome with emotion. I have no words to describe what you mean to me,” Bonds wrote on Instagram. Years earlier, when living in Manhattan, he endeared himself to young fans by playing in neighborhood stickball games.
Durocher managed Mays from 1951-55 and became a father figure – the surly but astute leader who nurtured and sometimes pampered the young phenom. As Durocher liked to tell it, and Mays never disputed, Mays struggled in his first few games and was ready to go back to the minors. His military service the next two years stalled his career, but not his development. Mays was assigned as a batting instructor for his unit’s baseball team and, at the suggestion of one pupil, began catching fly balls by holding out his glove face up, around his belly, like a basket. Mays adopted the new approach in part because it enabled him to throw more quickly.
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Willie Mays, Giants’ Electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ Has Died at 93Source of breaking news and analysis, insightful commentary and original reporting, curated and written specifically for the new generation of independent and conservative thinkers.
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Willie Mays, the Giants’ electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ dies at 93Willie Mays, baseball’s exuberant and electrifying “Say Hey Kid,” has died at 93. The San Francisco Giants and Mays’ family jointly announced his death. The Giants center fi…
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Willie Mays, Giants’ electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ passes away at 93Willie Mays, one of the greatest players in Major League Baseball history, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 93.
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Willie Mays, Giants’ electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ has died at 93Willie Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays' fa...
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Willie Mays, Giants' electrifying 'Say Hey Kid,' has died at 93Willie Mays, baseball's exuberant and electrifying 'Say Hey Kid,' has died at 93.
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Willie Mays, Giants’ electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ has died at 93Willie Mays, baseball’s exuberant and electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ has died at 93
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