Willie Mays, American Baseball Legend

Willie Mays, American Baseball Legend

Willie Mays, September 30, 1951. Brooklyn Public Library/Photo Researchers. Willie Howard Mays, Jr. (born May 6, 1931) is a retired American professional baseball player who spent the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979 in his first year of eligibility. He was nicknamed The Say Hey Kid. 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 runs, third at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-time. He 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. He was a center fielder and won a record-tying 12 Gold Gloves starting the year the award was introduced six seasons into his career. In 1999, he placed second on The Sporting News's "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. 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.

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3821 x 4890 px | 53.5 MB

32.4 x 41.4 cm | 12.7 x 16.3 in (300 dpi)