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Great African American Baseball Players
Willie Mays
If there's any word to describe Willie Mays as a baseball player it would be excellent. Mays excelled in all categories. Born in Alabama, by the age of 6 he went to an all black school. When he was 8 he was good enough at baseball to play with the 12-year-olds.
When Mays was 19 he joined the Negro Birmingham Black Barons. Then in 1951 he became part of the New York Giants. In that year he received the "Rookie of the Year" award. This was during the Korean War, and the next year Mays was drafted into military service. When he came back, his first at-bat was a home run.
Willie Mays began his major league baseball career with only one hit in his first 26 at-bats. Though he went on to hit 660 home runs (third on the all-time list), and steal more than 300 bases, his debut was so unimpressive it seemed unlikely he would last more than a few weeks as a big-leaguer, let alone become one of the greatest to play the game.
The turning point for Mays occurred when his manager, Leo Durocher, found him crying in the dugout after yet another miserable performance at the plate. The coach put his arm around Mays and said, "What's the matter, son?" Mays said, "I can't hit up here. I belong in the minor leagues." Durocher said this to Willie Mays: "As long as I'm manager of the Giants, you'll be my centerfielder."
You know how the story ends. It wasn't long before Mays began hitting the ball, and he was on his way to becoming a legend of the game. If Willie had been left alone in the dugout that day, his career might have ended before it started. Fortunately for him (and for baseball) someone believed in him even when he didn't believe in himself.
A year later he became an All-Star Player. He played in All-Star games from 1954 until 1974. Also in 1954, the Giants won their first World Series. Mays was named Most Valuable Player that year for his many great plays, including his over-the-shoulder catch to sweep the Indians in the World Series. Mays won MVP another time. He also won many other awards: twelve gold gloves, four National League crowns, and three stolen base titles.
An interesting fact about Willie Mays is that he is the godfather of another Giants' star Barry Bonds. Mays is 3rd on the all-time home run list with 660. His nickname is the "Say Hey Kid" because of his enthusiasm. Willie Mays is still alive today and living in California. Most People who think about baseball at all consider him the greatest baseball player.
OUTFIELD
Willie Mays
1951-1973
Born:May 6, 1931,
Westfield, Ala.
Bats:Right.
Throws:Right.
Height:5-11.
Weight:180.
Career Highlights:Could do almost anything on the field, and considered by many to be baseball's best all-around player. ... When he retired in 1973, only Babe Ruth had hit more home runs. ... Holds record for most multiple HR games (63). ... Holds most of the All-Star Game records.
Career Stats:
AVG.
HR
RBI
SB .302 660 1,903 338
Willie Mays, standing, with his arm around Roy Campanella 1961.
Born in 1921 in Philadelphia, Roy Campanellawas inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969. Willie Howard Mays, Jr. ("Say Hey"), born in 1931 in Westfield, Alabama, was inducted ten years later. Both Campanella, who was a catcher with the Brooklyn Dodgers for most of his professional years, and Mays, the third African American player in the 1951 Giants outfield, began their careers in the Negro Baseball Leagues. Although Jackie Robinsonwas the first black player in the major leagues, these other players also faced difficulties and sometimes even danger from hostile players and fans.
Long before he would become the Giants' Say Hey Kid, future Hall of Famer Willie Mays played with the Chatanooga Choo-Choos in 1946 briefly before he joined the Negro League Black Barons. Offered is Willie Mays' earliest known photo with an organized team in existence. Posing with the team he played with immediately after graduating high school, Mays is shown kneeling in the front row (middle) with his glove resting on his knee.
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