After Willie Mays passed away at the age of 93, the baseball community celebrated his accomplishments and regarded him as one of the sport’s greatest players ever.
Mays won the 1954 World Series with the New York Giants and was twice named the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP).
His clutch catch during the championship game is still regarded as one of the most memorable moments in the history of America’s “national pastime.”
A former player told the that Mays personified the mindset to “just keep playing and having fun” in addition to his accomplishments on the field.
The center fielder, known by his nickname “Say Hey Kid,” was the oldest active Hall of Famer in baseball.
The San Francisco Giants, his former team, made the announcement of his passing “with great sadness” on Tuesday.
Mays won the 1954 World Series with the New York Giants and was twice named the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP).
His clutch catch during the championship game is still regarded as one of the most memorable moments in the history of America’s “national pastime.”
A former player told the BBC that Mays personified the mindset to “just keep playing and having fun” in addition to his accomplishments on the field.
The center fielder, known by his nickname “Say Hey Kid,” was the oldest active Hall of Famer in baseball.
The San Francisco Giants, his former team, made the announcement of his passing “with great sadness” on Tuesday.
Michael, the son of Mays, told the Associated Press that his father passed away while his family was around and expressed gratitude to his supporters for their years of encouragement.
“My father died quietly, surrounded by those he loved. He remarked, “I want to thank you all for the unwavering love you have shown him over the years from the bottom of my broken heart.” “You have been the blood of his life.”
In response to the passing of “one of the most exciting all-around players in our sport’s history,” Major League Baseball (MLB) expressed their “heartbreak.”
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred described Mays as a “true Giant on and off the field.”
“The amazement that accompanied his astounding accomplishments and numbers does not even begin to convey the watching Willie Mays dominate the game in every way imaginable,” Manfred added.
However, California Governor Gavin Newsom stated that Mays was “more than just a baseball icon”.
“He broke barriers and inspired millions of Americans – setting records, bringing joy to countless fans, and becoming a role model for a generation of future athletes.”
The MLB decided to use data from the Negro League earlier this month, adding 10 more hits to Mays’s career record, even though he hasn’t played professional sports in almost 50 years.
Including the ten hits he scored for the Birmingham Black Barons in 1948, his record currently stands at 3,293 hits.
Mays said on Monday that he would be unable to go to a game in his honor that was set to take place in Birmingham on Thursday.
“All of my Black Barons teammates and all of you who are honoring the Negro League ballplayers—who should always be remembered—my heart will be with you,” he remarked. “I hope the kids will enjoy and be inspired by it; it’s going to be a special day.”
Mays grew up in Westfield, Alabama, and started playing professional baseball in 1948 while he was still a high school student.
He signed with the New York Giants (later renamed the San Francisco Giants) in 1950. At the age of 20, he scored 20 home runs for the team in 1951.
Mays was drafted into the US Army to fight in the Korean War following the 1951 season.
The famous catch
Mays served in the military and missed the 1952 and 1953 seasons. He returned in 1954 and won his first MVP award.
He was a part of the club that won the World Series against Cleveland that same year.
The squad won 5-2 after ten innings thanks to the iconic over-the-shoulder catch he made throughout the contest.
At the age of forty-one, he was traded to the New York Mets in 1972, where he played for two more seasons until retiring.
He continued to be a familiar sight in the Giants dugout after his playing days were over, giving new players advice both on and off the field.
He had time for you all the time. You could talk to him about something because of the way he was baseball and he would give you honest opinions,” retired Giants player JT Snow told the.
“Baseball is a challenging game where we experience highs and lows. He said, “Just keep playing and having fun,” as I recall.
Snow claimed that Mays changed the game by adhering to a straightforward attitude and ignoring the chatter of analytics and statistics: “I run the bases and catch it, and I see the ball and hit the ball.”
