Stats. a privately run / non-commercial site in need of financial assistance. Copyright 1999- After sharing some of it with his teammates, Mays sent the rest to the Texas Children's Hospital. 1971. 1973 New York Mets. Salaries may not be complete (especially pre-1985) and may not include some earned bonuses, Note, this is done in an automated way, so we apologize for any errors, & please. Willie was young (21-22), but he had hit 20 HRs in . document.write(update); He won the admiration of many with his cheerful personality, sportsmanship, and restraint in the face of provocation. (10,378th in major league history), AL/NL Debut: Willie Mays had 660 home runs over his career. Owning a Mantle rookie may not be in the price range of every vintage card collector, but other Mantle cards are affordable. Lou Gehrig is the only other player to post at least 7.0 WAR in even 10 straight seasons (he did it for 11 from 1927-37). - Sportswriter Harry Jupiter in The San Francisco Chronicle [Willie Mays Quotes], Willie 'The Say Hey Kid' Mays Autograph on a 1986 Topps Baseball Card (#403 | Checklist), Willie Mays League Championship Series Pitching Stats, Willie Mays League Championship Series Hitting Stats, Willie Mays League Championship Series Fielding Stats, Willie Mays League Championship Series Miscellaneous Stats, Willie Mays League Championship Series Miscellaneous Items of Interest. Willie Aikens was born on Thursday, October 14, 1954, in Seneca, South Carolina. Notes: The Date / Box field has a link to the box score from the game being described. Mays clearly didn't miss a beat upon returning in '54, leading the Majors with a .345 average and a .667 slugging percentage, while also racking up 41 homers, 110 RBIs and an NL-best 13 triples en route to earning his first NL MVP Award. If the Braves had signed him they would have had Mays, Aaron, Mathews and Spahn on the team from 1954 through 1965. Say Hey Kid is a nickname for Willie Mays. Gender: Male. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. document.write(update); 16) Ranking among the best. . documentary. Willie Mays is shown "the key" to the Willie Mays Ballpark by Bob Hellman before the opening ceremony for the Homer Field Willie Mays Ballpark on May 9, 2015. 24 - Willie Mays was an All-Star twenty-four times, tied with Hank Aaron and Stan Musial for the most in baseball history, prompting Ted Williams to say, "They invented the All-Star Game for Willie Mays.". All Rights Reserved by Baseball Almanac, Inc.Hosted by Hosting 4 Less. Stats Awards Fabulous Feats Famous Firsts Hall of Fame Hitting Charts . Willie Mays hit 660 home runs during his career, 335 while playing at home, 325 while on the road. Willie Mays Baseball Stats by Baseball Almanac. Keep in mind that upon his return to the Majors in '54, Mays accounted for at least 7.0 WAR every season from 1954-66. update=copyright.getFullYear(); Gambling problem? If you find this type of "free" data useful please consider 2023 Topps '88 Topps Blue #T8812 Willie Mays - Check out your favorite player cards listed in Beckett Marketplace. Mays logged only 10 at-bats over 12 games. More about data coverage. "Do you have a favorite quote from or about this particular Major League Baseball player that you would like to see here? 1971 - Willie Mays homered in the first four consecutive games of the 1971 season, setting a new record for most games with a home run from the start of a season. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. He inflated his .618 OPS with the San Francisco Giants (over 19 games) to .848 with a .402 OBP that was one of his higher marks in the Majors. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. 23) 162-game averagesEven factoring in the decline over his final seasons, Mays' career numbers work out to 162-game averages of 36 homers, 103 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. All Rights Reserved by Baseball Almanac, Inc.Hosted by Hosting 4 Less. Register Batting. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Willie Mays is a former professional American baseball center fielder. "I don't make history. He played in only 34 games in 1952, then missed the entire '53 season after being drafted into the Army. [The Oldest Living Major League Baseball Players]. All Rights Reserved by Baseball Almanac, Inc.Hosted by Hosting 4 Less. items-of-interest. 2015 - Willie Mays received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2015. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Mays homered off 266 different pitchers during his career, connected most often while batting third in the lineup, and drove in 1038 . document.write(update); The documentary "Say Hey, Willie Mays!" premiered tonight on HBO and HBO Max. Dave Kingman. Infamous stumbles while losing fly balls in the sun (though the Oakland sunshine was just as troublesome for As outfielders) during Game 2 of the World Series poisoned the well and primed reporters and historians for belletristic writings on a painful denouement to a legendary career. Before Willie Mays, the typical baseball scout's report on a talented black player would mention the player's color first, his ability second. All Rights Reserved by Baseball Almanac, Inc.Hosted by Hosting 4 Less. September 9, 1973 making a donation to Baseball Almanac : As for opposing pitchers, he was a career .300 hitter with a .917 against righties, and a .305 hitter with a 1.006 OPS vs. lefties. He won the National League Most Valuable Player Award twice during that stretch -- first in 1954 and again in '65 -- but he was a yearly contender for the honor. We have box scores from every All-Star Game in history, line scores, accurate rosters, play-by-play data, trivia, a sample program, and a detailed written account of each Midsummer Classic. 2nd inning (46), var pfHeaderImgUrl = '';var pfHeaderTagline = '';var pfdisableClickToDel = 0;var pfHideImages = 0;var pfImageDisplayStyle = 'right';var pfDisablePDF = 0;var pfDisableEmail = 0;var pfDisablePrint = 0;var pfCustomCSS = 'https://www.baseball-almanac.com/css/print.css';var pfBtVersion='2';(function(){var js,pf;pf=document.createElement('script');pf.type='text/javascript';pf.src='//cdn.printfriendly.com/printfriendly.js';document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].appendChild(pf)})(); Did you know that in the Willie Mays Miscellaneous World Series Items of Interest section seen above you can click the Stats link under the World Series label and a truly comprehensive history of that World Series will appear on your screen? 21) Split proofFor Mays, it didn't matter where he was playing or who he was facing -- he was going to produce. The caveat to that number is that it includes four seasons (1959-62) in which there were two All-Star Games. 1954 - Willie Mays made "The Catch" during the 1954 World Series. . Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. Mays accomplished the feat in 1957, when he racked up 26 doubles, 20 triples, 35 homers and 38 stolen bases. The first baseman cracks a joke, Mays smiles andamazinglystrokes the tip of Tenaces mustache. Weekend BP: Ismael Munguia makes a splash in his return, MLB Pipelines top 30 Giants prospects heading into 2023. Youth. Mays also ranks second within the 500-homer club in stolen bases (338), trailing only Barry Bonds (514). Birth Country: United States. That ranks fifth all time, behind only Jimmie Foxx, Barry Bonds, Stan Musial and Henry Aaron. Find out more. Stats. Join our linker program. Willie Mays appeared in 136 Major League games during 1966 Topps Willie Mays 2022-11-08. . Bats/Throws: R/R. The 20 year old Mays next up when the Giants win the pennant. Stats. (PREMIUM setting) He disappeared for two days during Spring Training, earning a fine from manager Yogi Berra, he spent time on the disabled list, was left out of lineups, his range and arm strength declined in the outfield and he found himself practicing short-hops and holding runners at first base. Willie Mays hit 365 solo homers, 220 with a single runner on base, 67 with two men on base, and 8 grand slams. Awards. But that didn't even bother him. New York Daily News columnist Dick Young wrote about the 23 votes who chose not to enshrine Mays, "If Jesus Christ were to show up with his old baseball glove, some guys wouldn't vote for him. Facing the Mets in Game 2 of a doubleheader at Shea Stadium on May 31, 1964, Mays shifted from center field to shortstop to begin the bottom of the 10th inning. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Baseball legend Willie Howard Mays Jr. was born May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama. 'He was in total denial,' says Aikens' former agent, Ron Shapiro, who eventually had him admitted to a drug treatment program. See coverage note. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, draft status, bats, throws, school and more on Baseball-reference.com I wanted Willie Mays to be perfect, but he just wasnt. Yet neither could find an answer for Mays' prowess at the plate. update=copyright.getFullYear(); 8th inning (91), The Giants will face off against Bruce Bochys Rangers today in Cactus League action. This marked one of two career appearances at shortstop for Mays, who played 2,832 games in center field, 83 at first base, 12 in right field, two in left and one at third base. If the Date is followed by an asterisk (*), Mays started during that game at the first position listed in 5th inning (53), 17) All-around talentMays had three seasons in which he racked up at least 8.0 offensive bWAR and 2.0 defensive bWAR. 3) A run like no other: 13 years of MVP consideration. From his remarkable combination of speed and power at the plate to his iconic defense in center field, Willie Mays is undoubtedly one of the best all-around players in Major League history. When I was a kid, going over Willie Mayss career stats I was always disappointed that he went to the Mets. Incredibly, Mays' four-homer effort came opposite fellow Hall of Famer Henry Aaron, who hit two long balls of his own in one of the best head-to-head slugging showdowns of all-time. On Thursday, the Say Hey Kid gets to add another one: He turns 90 years . Gaps In The Road. Much of the play-by-play, game results, and transaction information both shown and used to create certain data sets was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by RetroSheet. Career Stats Game Log Splits. Do you have a blog? $165,000.00. The total success rate of Willie Mays is about 76.7 percent. 24 amazing Willie Mays stats and facts. 13) League leader in everything?While some players consistently lead the league in a certain category -- whether it be home runs or stolen bases or triples -- it was nearly impossible to predict which stat Mays would ultimately lead his league in for a given season. All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. 12-15-2014, 03:24 PM. Did you know the smallest crowd at a League Championship game was 24,265 and that game was played on October 11, 1973? Stats. Birth date: May 6, 1931. Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. "No one will ever know the athlete (Willie) Aikens could've been, what was already slipping away on that mid-October night in 1980 when, after he hit his fourth homer of the World Series against the Phillies in Game 4, he left the ballpark and celebrated by snorting a few lines of cocaine. a privately run / non-commercial site in need of financial assistance. Only five other players have even logged a plate appearance in that many Midsummer Classics. Mays steps out. document.write(update); 11) Mays and Trout in class of their ownMike Trout has often drawn comparisons to Mays due to the pair's consistency and dominance in center field -- and the two stand alone as the only players in Major League history with multiple seasons of at least a .320 batting average, 25 home runs and 30 stolen bases. He was just 1-for-10 at the plate, while fellow Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry earned the win after tossing 10 scoreless innings in relief. In fact, he received a share of MVP votes each season from 1954-66 and he finished in the top 6 in 12 of those 13 years -- and in the top 3 six times. . Mays was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on May 25, 1951, with the New York Giants. Dr. Ankit Shah I De-dollarization: Is the World moving away from the Dollar? Part of the Baseball Almanac Family, Last-Modified: February 5, 2023 3:00 AM EST, The Oldest Living Major League Baseball Players, The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Awards, Most Seasons With XX Home Runs Record Book, Fairfield Industrial High School (Fairfield, AL). (Age 42-126d) That means Mays finished only 6.6 WAR shy of the all-time mark despite missing most of the 1952 season and the entire 1953 season while serving in the U.S. Army. When scouts described young Willie Mays, they mentioned his . May 6, 2023. Willie Mays Stats, Fantasy & News Noticias. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. - Sportswriter Harry Jupiter in The San Francisco Chronicle [Willie Mays Quotes], Willie 'The Say Hey Kid' Mays Autograph on a 1986 Topps Baseball Card (#403 | Checklist), Willie Mays World Series Miscellaneous Stats, Willie Mays World Series Miscellaneous Items of Interest. "The Say Hey Kid" hit better than .300 against each pitcher, combining for a .318/.371/.596 slash line and 59 extra-base hits, including 31 home runs, against the Hall of Fame duo. Then, as if he knows the inevitability of whats coming next, he looks up into the sun. Mays was 20 years old when he broke into the big leagues on May 25 1951 with the . He won a batting title, four home run titles and four stolen base titles. In 1985, the format of the League Championship Series changed to best-of-seven. NL Rookie of the Year. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. Willie Mays | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1979 (HOF), The Say Hey Kid only won a single batting title, when he hit .345 in 1954, but that same year he also led the National League in slugging percentage (which he led five times), on base percentage (which he led five times) and triples (which he led three times). Mays kept the trend going with a three-run bomb off reliever Seth Morehead before adding a two-run shot off another All-Star pitcher, Don McMahon, in the eighth. 8) His star shines brightestMays didn't just play in those All-Star Games -- he quite literally starred in them. Cumulative monthly totals are provided where applicable. The Willie Mays League Championship Series stats seen below include his League Championship Series year-by-year hitting stats, League Championship Series fielding stats, and League Championship Series pitching stats (where applicable). Player stats do not include the extensive amount of exhibitions and barnstorming games Negro League teams often played. If you find this type of "free" data useful please consider - Sportswriter Harry Jupiter in The San Francisco Chronicle [Willie Mays Quotes], Willie Mays Career Home Runs | Research by Baseball Almanac. copyright=new Date(); [Answer], 1979 - Willie Mays was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, on his first ballot, with 94.7% of the votes. 24's legendary career. - Baseball Almanac, In Chronological Order / Willie Mays Stats, Willie Mays 1971 Game by Game Batting Logs. Mays expects it and unravels, bringing the barrel of his bat around on an outside fastball that skips between 3rd base and short for a hit. Willie Mays 1971 Game by Game Batting Logs. Play Ball Youth Baseball & Softball. Mays won 2 MVP Awards and was selected to play in 24 All-Star Games. 4th inning (67), Charisma.". He welcomes Thomson home, elated, relieved, knowing that hed get his turns at-bat with a promising future ahead of him. Associated Press 1970 Show More Show Less 2 of 11. Willie Mays. Mays faced 14 Hall of Fame pitchers overall, posting a .286 batting average and an .859 OPS over 1,319 plate appearances. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Where what happened yesterday is being preserved today. Willie Howard Mays, Jr. was a Major League Baseball player with the Birmingham Black Barons (1948-1950), New York Giants (1951-1957), San Francisco Giants (1958-1972), and New York Mets (1972-1973). He was the first player in MLB history with multiple 35-35 seasons, though he's since been joined by Bobby Bonds, Barry Bonds and Alfonso Soriano.