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Willie Mays & John Shea. 24 Life Stories and Lessons from the Say Hey Kid. Published may 12, 2020.

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Willie Mays was born in Westfield, Alabama, and grew up in a baseball-loving family. His father and uncle played baseball, influencing his early passion.

Quote #1: "He wasn't just my father, he way my friend. He always supported me and never hollered at me. He was a positive influence and always had an upbeat attitude on life, and I've always strived for those things. He wasn't always around, but he taught me about life and baseball. I was so far ahead of the other kids because of what my dad gave me." (16)

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#2  | High School and Early Baseball Career (1947-1950)

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#2  | High School and Early Baseball Career (1947-1950)

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Willie Mays Played for the Birmingham Black Barons in the Negro Leagues as a teenager, showing early how he was a athletic prodigy.

Outside Source #1:

https://rickwood.com/1948-1950-birmingham-black-baron-willie-mays-8/#:~:text=Mays%20started%20playing%20for%20the,the%20Negro%20American%20League%20championship.

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#3 | Signing with the New York Giants (1950)

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#3 | Signing with the New York Giants (1950)

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The major leagues took notice, and Mays signed with the New York Giants, starting in their minor league system.

Quote #2: "When the Giants signed me, I found it much easier playing in their minor-league system than playing in the Negro Leagues because the level in the Negro Leagues was so much higher." (54)

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Mays was called up to the Giants, where he started his rookie season slowly but then hit a memorable first home run off Warren Spahn.

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#5 | Rookie award along with the World Series (1951)

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#5 | Rookie award along with the World Series (1951)

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Willie Mays won National League Rookie of the Year and helped the Giants reach the World Series.

Quote #3: "I was crying. I was upset. I wanted to go back to Minneapolis. I told Leo this league might be too fast for me. He said, ""Son, you're my center fielder. You just go out and catch the ball. We'll hit for you."" I was thinking too much. I was being called names. Philadelphia had good pitchers. Leo just told me to go home and get some rest." (60)

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Mays was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War, missing nearly two full seasons, this didn't hurt his career though.

Outside Source #2:

https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/may-27-1952-willie-mays-leads-giants-over-dodgers-as-army-induction-approaches/

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#7 | Returning to the MLB and First MVP Award (1954)

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#7 | Returning to the MLB and First MVP Award (1954)

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Mays returned to the Giants, then he won his first MVP award, and made the famous “The Catch” in the World Series against the Cleveland Indians.

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Mays became the face of the Giants, leading the team with incredible hitting, speed, and fielding skills.

Quote #4: "I just feel that when you're playing sports, you have to do more than catch the ball and throw it back in. You have to do something different. You've got to improvise sometimes, you've got to create something for the fans. Make it fun. I tried to do something different at all times." (65)

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The Giants relocated to San Francisco, where Mays became the heart of the team.

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#10 | Hitting 4 Home Runs in a Single Game (1961)

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#10 | Hitting 4 Home Runs in a Single Game (1961)

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On April 30, 1961, Mays homered not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times in a game against the Milwaukee Braves at Milwaukee County Stadium. One of the greatest single-game performances in MLB history.

Quote #5: "Davvy made the last out, and they booed him in Milwaukee because the ninth inning ended with me on deck. I teased him about that. ""Man, we should've switched. You should've hit third, should've hit second, I could've gotten another at-bat."" Looking back, I should've had five any-way, but Hank made a great play at the fence/ He was playing center field that day. I remember the whole game. I hit the ball very well." (136)

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Mays hit his 60th homerun in 1969 on September 22, he commented winning the game was more important to him than any of his individual achievements.

Outside Source #3:

https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/september-22-1969-mays-hits-his-600th-homer-and-frank-torre-can-go-home-now/

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September 22, 1969: Willie Mays hits his 600th homer and Frank Torre can go home now – Society for American Baseball Research

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#12 | Final World series appearance (1973)

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#12 | Final World series appearance (1973)

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Mays played with the New York Mets in the World Series, showing his leadership despite aging.

Quote #6: "We had a good team in '73. We had a good staff, man. The pitching was better than the hitting. Seaver, Mallick, Koosman. McGraw out of the bullpen. We brought in George Stone, a tall lefty who had a good year. We had good guys. We enjoyed each other. I wasn't able to do much because of injuries. When I Hurt my side in Montreal, chasing that ball near the dugout, I could still play first base but couldn't swing the bat. I was going to be there for everyone. For me, I was finishing up, It was time." (190)

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Mays officially retired with 660 home runs and one of the greatest all-around careers in MLB history, retriting his number.

Outside Source #4:

https://www.amny.com/sports/willie-mays-closure-mets-retirement-6-26-24/

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Mays went on to help coach other players after he retired being a mentor to young players, sharing his knowledge and love for the game.

Quote #7: "Yeah, okay, power and speed. I used speed, but only when I had to use it. He understands. Mike Trout plays every day. I played every day. He's a five-tool player, and he has great instincts in he outfield. But you use your speed when you need to." (267)

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Mays was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the First Ballot stapling him into MLB history for having one of the greatest careers in the sport.

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Mays continued to be a global ambassador for the sport, advocating for African American Players.

Quote #8: "The 2010 Series was wonderful for these kids, and they won a lot of big games in 2012. Buster hit that grand slam in Cincinnati to clinch, and they beat St. Louis. It was a special group going back to Lincecum and Cain and Bumgarner, all those guys who did very well for them-selves and the franchise. I really liked the Kansas city one in '14 when Bumgarner came in and finished the last game. That was a tremendous performance." (296)

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#17 | Presidential Medal of Freedom (2015)

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#17 | Presidential Medal of Freedom (2015)

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Mays was honored by President of the U.S.A. Barack Obama for his contributions to baseball and society.

Outside Source #5:

https://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/Willie-Mays-receives-Medal-of-Freedom-from-6655583.php

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WASHINGTON - Willie Mays accepted the nation's highest civilian honor at the White House on Tuesday, as President Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The president walked over to Mays and placed the award around his neck as Mays removed his Giants cap for the presentation before sitting back down with the 16 other honorees.

Mays didn't speak during the ceremonies, but the nation's first black president recounted what he had said to Mays in an earlier conversation, that it is "because of giants like Mays, (that) someone like me could even think about running for president."

Mays began his professional career with his father as part of the Negro League's Birmingham Black Barons. He made his major-league debut with the then-New York Giants on May 25, 1951 - 19 days after he turned 20 and a little more than four years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Mays, 84, won two MVP awards and was a 24-time All-Star during his storied career, all but one year of which was spent with the New York and San Francisco Giants.

Considered by many to be the greatest all-around player in baseball history, Mays had long ago been honored by the Giants, who gave what is now AT&T Park the address 24 Willie Mays Plaza and placed a bronze statue of him - surrounded by 24 palm trees - in front of it. In addition, the right-field wall inside the park is 24 feet tall - all in tribute to Mays' jersey number.

San Francisco has long celebrated May 24 as Willie Mays Day in the city.

Mays told The Chronicle when he heard of his selection that none of the multitude of baseball awards compares with the Medal of Freedom, which the White House said goes to "individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors."

Known as the "Say Hey Kid," his nickname's murky provenance might stem from his arrival in the major leagues when he didn't know everyone's name. "You see a guy, you say, 'Hey, man. Say hey, man,'" Mays was quoted as saying in 2006. The nickname stuck.

Mays grew up in Fairfield, Ala., the son of two gifted athletes. His mother, Annie Satterwhite, was a high school track and basketball star, and his father, Willie Howard "Cat" Mays, played on an all-black team sponsored by the local steel mill. The elder Mays taught his son to play catch at age 5. By 14, the younger Mays was playing outfield alongside his father on the Barons.

Mays played center and his father played left field. "You play on the line, I"ll take care of everything else," Mays said he told his father.

Obama took special note of Mays' over-the-shoulder catch of Vic Wertz's blast to deep center in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, calling it "one of the most spectacular plays in sports history." The Giants were underdogs in the Series, but - perhaps inspired by the catch - they swept the Cleveland Indians in four games. Mays did not win another World Series as a player, and the Giants' franchise went without another one until 2010.

Other recipients of the award Tuesday included director Steven Spielberg, singers Barbra Streisand and James Taylor, musician Itzhak Perlman, and former Yankees catcher Yogi Berra.

"Today we celebrate some extraordinary people: innovators, artists and leaders who contribute to America's strength as a nation," Obama said.

Mays was the 1951 National League Rookie of the Year, won 12 consecutive Gold Gloves (1957-68), won his MVP awards in 1954 and '65 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979 in his first year on the ballot.

He hit .302 in his career, and his 660 home runs are still the fifth most in baseball history, with his 3,283 hits the 12th most. Mays' godson, Barry Bonds - son of teammate Bobby Bonds - passed Mays with his 661st home run in 2004 and finished with a major-league-record 762.

Mays missed most of the 1952 season and all of 1953 after he was drafted by the Army during the Korean War. He has made his home in Atherton since 1969, and - in addition to his baseball awards - has honorary degrees from Yale, Dartmouth and San Francisco State universities. Harlem has a Willie Mays Drive, and Orlando a Willie Mays Parkway and Willie Mays Park.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Carolyn Lochhead is The San Francisco Chronicle's Washington correspondent. E-mail: clochhead@sfchronicle.com

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Willie Mays receives Medal of Freedom from President Obama

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Willie Mays receives Medal of Freedom from President Obama WASHINGTON - Willie Mays accepted the nation's highest civilian honor at the White House on Tuesday, as President Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

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#18 | Impact on the Game (2010's-Present)

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#18 | Impact on the Game (2010's-Present)

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Mays continued to inspire many baseball players and although in his old age he still continued to share his wisdom about perseverance, respect, and hard work.

Quote #9: "Very few retried players could maintain a leadership presence in the clubhouse after their careers end, but Mays is that guy, usually when your career ends, your voice ends. But with Willie, he'd walk into the clubhouse talking with his high-itched voice like he was in the lineup that day, He'd bring energy as he did as a player. He'd always have something to say, and he'd go right to the guy who was struggling and say something that we all listend to. we all got better because of it." (297)

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#19 | Legacy in San Francisco and New York (Throughout his career-Present)

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#19 | Legacy in San Francisco and New York (Throughout his career-Present)

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Celebrated as a baseball legend in both cities, with statues and tributes in his honor May's goes down in history.

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#20 | Willie May's Passing (June 18th 2024)

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#20 | Willie May's Passing (June 18th 2024)

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On June 18, 2024, Willie Mays died at age 93 from heart failure.

Quote #10: "I put the ball on a tee for Willie, and he hit it out the park-far more than 660 times with memories, options, and laughter. For his time, dedication, and loyalty, I'm Eternally grateful." (332)