Great stories, thanks for sharing.My favorite all time player! A few quick Willie Mays stories:
- My Dad was a NY Giants fan… he would take the train from Jersey City to the Polo grounds as a kid so when they left for San Francisco he remained a fan. Whenever the Giants played at Shea Pops would take us to a game. One night there were two hour long rain delays and we eventually moved from our Bob Uecker seats to right behind the giants dugout after Dad greased the usher a few bucks. By the 8th inning there were only a few thousand fans left. Willie would come to the far end of the dugout after the 3rd Mets out each inning, so I was right on the rail yelling his name and asking for an autograph. He entered the dugout and put his glove down then came back up the steps and signed an autograph for me DURING A LIVE GAME. It was a thrill for a young kid and something I’ll never forget. Imagine that happening today!
- Willie drove a Pink Cadillac, you couldn’t miss it. My Dad was buying advance tickets at the Shea box office and Willie drove by (this was his Mets year 1973). He pulled over and got out and signed autographs for everyone in line. He was the best.
- My dad brought home two puppies someone left in a box outside of his job. We named them Say and Hey.
Willie could do it all and for me he is in the discussion as the greatest all around player of all time. RIP Willie.
None of the clips show the throw back to the infield. That throw was as important as the catch. The game (the first in the 1954 World Series) was scoreless in the 8th inning and the Indians had runners on first and second with no outs. Center field in the Polo Grounds was so deep that it was possible for a runner at second to tag and score after a catch. But Mays' throw was so good that the runner on second couldn't even try to score. That kept the game scoreless and the Giants won in extra innings. Mays said afterwards that as he was running for the ball he realized that he would have to make a great throw back to the infield.
why? Do all top 10 players get their numbers retired throughout the game?24 must be retired throughout the game.
that must have been awesome at that time. Imagine all 3 teams in NY, not too far away and the fans during baseball season. You are lucky to have experienced thatWas 6 years old in 54, first year I followed baseball and was a Giants fan. Dad was a Dodger fan and older brother a Yankee fan. Went to a lot of games for all three NY teams.
Here's Vin Scully talking with Mays about that catch you mentioned:True that this was his most significant catch ever. However, this was not his best catch ever. The one catch he made was at Ebbets Field against the Dodgers was the most amazing one. A ball was hit into the left field gap; Willie caught up to it on a horizontal dive parallel to the turf; hit the wall 4 feet above the ground, fell to the ground motionless. Though briefly unconscious , still held onto the ball for an out. I saw that play on TV and never forgot how amazing it was!
spot on, no one talks about it as it was good throw to 2nd for the double play from close to the wall where that field hit close to 480' I believe. Catch was awesome, but the throw was a killer!Best part of that play was the throw he made after catching that ball
I remember seeing Willie for the first time in the Mets clubhouse when he was in his underwear (I had been introduced to him when he was a Giant)
I was a freshman in high school and had never seen a body like that.
He had bulging strength veins running down his thighs and calves like he had in his arms.
That image has been etched in my mind for 55 years…
Great stories indeed, especially the one about the puppy namesMy favorite all time player! A few quick Willie Mays stories:
- My Dad was a NY Giants fan… he would take the train from Jersey City to the Polo grounds as a kid so when they left for San Francisco he remained a fan. Whenever the Giants played at Shea Pops would take us to a game. One night there were two hour long rain delays and we eventually moved from our Bob Uecker seats to right behind the giants dugout after Dad greased the usher a few bucks. By the 8th inning there were only a few thousand fans left. Willie would come to the far end of the dugout after the 3rd Mets out each inning, so I was right on the rail yelling his name and asking for an autograph. He entered the dugout and put his glove down then came back up the steps and signed an autograph for me DURING A LIVE GAME. It was a thrill for a young kid and something I’ll never forget. Imagine that happening today!
- Willie drove a Pink Cadillac, you couldn’t miss it. My Dad was buying advance tickets at the Shea box office and Willie drove by (this was his Mets year 1973). He pulled over and got out and signed autographs for everyone in line. He was the best.
- My dad brought home two puppies someone left in a box outside of his job. We named them Say and Hey.
Willie could do it all and for me he is in the discussion as the greatest all around player of all time. RIP Willie.
I’m sure I’m not the only one but I read this part like you were still a little kid telling your friends.My favorite all time player! A few quick Willie Mays stories:
- My Dad was a NY Giants fan… he would take the train from Jersey City to the Polo grounds as a kid so when they left for San Francisco he remained a fan. Whenever the Giants played at Shea Pops would take us to a game. One night there were two hour long rain delays and we eventually moved from our Bob Uecker seats to right behind the giants dugout after Dad greased the usher a few bucks. By the 8th inning there were only a few thousand fans left. Willie would come to the far end of the dugout after the 3rd Mets out each inning, so I was right on the rail yelling his name and asking for an autograph. He entered the dugout and put his glove down then came back up the steps and signed an autograph for me DURING A LIVE GAME. It was a thrill for a young kid and something I’ll never forget. Imagine that happening today!
- Willie drove a Pink Cadillac, you couldn’t miss it. My Dad was buying advance tickets at the Shea box office and Willie drove by (this was his Mets year 1973). He pulled over and got out and signed autographs for everyone in line. He was the best.
- My dad brought home two puppies someone left in a box outside of his job. We named them Say and Hey.
Willie could do it all and for me he is in the discussion as the greatest all around player of all time. RIP Willie.
lots of players did things like this back in the day. the game and the players are just different now unfortunately. He did lots of things for kids and families that people don't even know about unless you dig or look up. he was awesomeMays was not just a great player -- his infectious enthusiasm did a lot for the game. As a young player, he would play stickball with kids in Harlem after day games.
Thanks for showing that video between Willie and Vince Scully. What I did not remember was that the bases were loaded and there were two outs. A very significant catch as well in that situation.
Yes, I remember one game when he was caught between 3rd and home, fell and got tagged outSad ending to Willie's career...with the Mets two years after he should have retired.
Mays official stats say (Did not play Miltary service) for 1953
But he actually missed all of 1952 except for a couple weeks.
Really 2 full years missed in service to the country
Yeah, I've always noticed that most videos and description this play leave out the throw, which was at least as amazing as the catch, especially given the situation...None of the clips show the throw back to the infield. That throw was as important as the catch. The game (the first in the 1954 World Series) was scoreless in the 8th inning and the Indians had runners on first and second with no outs. Center field in the Polo Grounds was so deep that it was possible for a runner at second to tag and score after a catch. But Mays' throw was so good that the runner on second couldn't even try to score. That kept the game scoreless and the Giants won in extra innings. Mays said afterwards that as he was running for the ball he realized that he would have to make a great throw back to the infield.
2x for Teddy Ballgame.Wonder what the stats for Mays, and even more so Ted Williams, would have been if their careers hadn't been interrupted by their service. 714 likely would have been surpassed before Aaron by Mays.
It would also have helped Mays not to have to hit in Candlestick Park which (and I can tell you from experience) was a huge wind tunnel at night which the wind whipping off San Francisco Bay from center toward home plate. It was years before someone thought of enclosing the stadium. Horace Stoneham, the Giants' owner when Candlestick was built, said that no one had ever visited the site after 3:30 pm.Wonder what the stats for Mays, and even more so Ted Williams, would have been if their careers hadn't been interrupted by their service. 714 likely would have been surpassed before Aaron by Mays.
One of the many reasons that it is hard to compare Mays and Mantle is that Mantle was declared 4-F because of osteomyelitis (one of the many physical burdens he had) and so Mantle did not miss time for military service. In the 1950s, Mantle was regularly booed by some fans at Yankee Stadium as a 'draft-dodger." One sports writer once wondered in print why the boo-birds were in Yankee Stadium instead of themselves in the military.One aspect of Mays great career that gets overlooked is that he was drafted during the Korean conflict and served in the military for most of 1952 and all of 1953. His offensive statistics would have been considerably higher if not for that, along with the difficult hitting conditions in Candlestick Park. Edit: sorry I did not see the post above before I added this.
One of the many reasons that it is hard to compare Mays and Mantle is that Mantle was declared 4-F because of osteomyelitis (one of the many physical burdens he had) and so Mantle did not miss time for military service. In the 1950s, Mantle was regularly booed by some fans at Yankee Stadium as a 'draft-dodger." One sports writer once wondered in print why the boo-birds were in Yankee Stadium instead of themselves in the military.
BTW, it is also hard to compare Ted Williams with Stan Musial because Williams twice lost years in the military while Musial lost only a year.
It is now thought that Mantle suffered a torn ACL his rookie year in the 1951 World Series -- and never recovered because today's surgery wasn't available then. It is incredible that he was able to do what he did with a torn ACL.A generation later any football player (and anyone else for that matter) who had ACL surgery was 4F.