Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Mays was a five-tool player who began his career in the Negro leagues, playing for the Birmingham Black Barons, and spent the rest of his career in the National League (NL), playing for the New York / …

Jun 18, 2024 · 1950: Mays signs with New York Giants Mays’ life as a baseball prodigy accelerated after his 16th birthday, when he began playing with the Negro American League’s Birmingham Black Barons on the weekends while still carrying out his high school education during the week.

Jun 19, 2024 · Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays’ family and the San Francisco Giants jointly announced Tuesday night, June 18, 2024, he had “passed away peacefully” Tuesday afternoon surrounded by loved ones.

Oct 10, 2024 · When the Giants moved from New York to San Francisco, Mays and his wife agreed to purchase a house on Miraloma Drive in Sherwood Forest, only to have the seller renege after neighbors expressed outrage over a Black family’s moving in. The mayor intervened; the sale went through.

Jun 19, 2024 · Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays' family...

Sep 22, 2024 · This 34-inch, 30-ounce Big Stick model bat commemorates Willie Mays' 600th home run, which the Hall of Fame outfielder hit on Sept. 22, 1969. (Milo Stewart Jr./National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum)

Jun 19, 2024 · Willie Mays in one of the best baseball players in history who was part of the Giants and the New York Mets. Read about his career, stats, death, and more.

At age 16, Willie Mays joined the Birmingham Barons of the Negro American League. The New York Giants purchased his contract in 1950, and he was in center field at the Polo Grounds by the next season.

“The Say Hey Kid” Willie Howard Mays Jr. (1931–2024) began his career in the Negro Leagues (1947) before joining the Major League’s New York Giants in 1951. Excepting time in military service (1952-1953,) the exuberant center fielder became a mainstay of the Giants, who relocated to San Francisco in 1958.

May 5, 2022 · Willie Mays, centerfielder for the New York Giants, is sworn in as a private at the U.S. Army induction center in New York on May 29, 1952. The 21-year-old Mays is rated as one of the most...