American · Westfield, Alabama · Born 6 May 1931 · Died 2024-06-18Willie Mays was a transcendent five-tool center fielder for the Giants, famed for his glove, arm, power and speed.
Willie Howard Mays Jr. was born on May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama, a predominantly Black company town near Fairfield, to Cat Mays, a talented amateur baseball player at the local iron plant, and Annie Satterwhite, a gifted high school athlete. His parents separated when he was three, and Mays was raised primarily by his father and two aunts, developing his baseball skills on the sandlots of industrial Alabama before joining the Negro Leagues' Birmingham Black Barons at just 17. Mays signed with the New York Giants and debuted in 1951, winning National League Rookie of the Year despite a slow start, and quickly developed into one of the most complete players the sport has ever produced — a rare combination of power, speed, defensive brilliance, and joyful showmanship. His signature moment came in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, when his over-the-shoulder, back-to-home-plate catch of a deep fly ball, forever known simply as "The Catch," became one of the most iconic defensive plays in baseball history. Nicknamed the "Say Hey Kid," Mays won two National League MVP awards (1954, 1965) and 12 consecutive Gold Glove Awards, and moved with the Giants to San Francisco in 1958. He finished his career with 660 home runs and a .301 batting average, closing out his playing days with the New York Mets in 1973, and was later celebrated as one of the last living links to both the Negro Leagues and the integration era of Major League Baseball. Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979 with 94.7% of the vote. In 2024, MLB's formal incorporation of Negro Leagues statistics into its official records led to renewed recognition of his career's full scope. He died on June 18, 2024, at age 93, just before that summer's MLB game held in his honor at Rickwood Field in Birmingham.
'The Say Hey Kid', widely regarded as the greatest all-around player ever
"The Catch" in the 1954 World Series — running with his back to the plate and catching over his shoulder at full sprint — is universally considered the greatest defensive play in baseball history.
Did You Know?How They Played
Five-tool player: hit for average and power, speed, fielding, arm strength
Lasting Impact
Greatest all-around player in baseball history, iconic center fielder
Career Honours
- World Series champion (1954)
- 2x NL MVP
- 12x Gold Glove
- 24x All-Star selection
- Hall of Fame 1979
| Team | Period | Games |
|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | 1951–1957 | 1046 |
| San Francisco Giants | 1958–1972 | 2211 |
| New York Mets | 1972–1973 | 135 |
American Athletes