Willie Mays

From SoSH

Contents 1 Overall Career 2 Awards 3 Achievements 4 Mays' Moment in the Sun 5 Quotes 6 Trivia 7 Transactions 8 External Links

Overall Career

Willie Howard Mays Jr. (May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama), nicknamed the "Say Hey Kid," played with enthusiasm and exuberance while excelling in all phases of the game - hitting for average and power, fielding, throwing and baserunning. His staggering career statistics include 3,283 hits and 660 home runs. The Giants' superstar earned National League Rookie of the Year honors in 1951 and two MVP awards. He accumulated 12 Gold Gloves, played in a record-tying 24 All-Star games and participated in four World Series. His catch of Vic Wertz's deep fly in the 1954 World Series remains one of baseball's most memorable moments.

Awards

• Elected to Hall of Fame by Baseball Writers in 1979 (94.68%)
  

• 1951 National League Rookie of the Year
• 1954 Major League Player of the Year
• 1971 Roberto Clemente Award
• 2-time National League Most Valuable Player (1954 & 1965)
• 2-time Major League All-Star Game MVP (1963 & 1968)
• 20-time National League All-Star (1954 - 1973)
• 12-time National League Gold Glove (1957 - 1968)

Achievements

• Member of the 500 Home Run Club (660 HR)
• Member of the 3,000 Hit Club (3,283 Hits)

• NL Batting Average Leader (1954)
• 2-time NL On-Base Percentage Leader (1965 & 1971)
• 5-time NL Slugging Percentage Leader (1954, 1955, 1957, 1964 & 1965)
• 5-time NL OPS Leader (1954, 1955, 1958, 1964 & 1965)
• 2-time NL Runs Scored Leader (1958-1961)
• NL Hits Leader (1960)
• 3-time NL Total Bases Leader (1955, 1962 & 1965)
• 3-time NL Triples Leader (1954, 1955 & 1957)
• 4-time NL Home Runs Leader (1955, 1962, 1964 & 1965)
• NL Bases on Balls Leader (1971)
• 4-time NL Stolen Bases Leader (1956-1959)
• 20-Home Run Seasons: 17 (1951, 1954-1968 & 1970)
• 30-Home Run Seasons: 11 (1954-1957, 1959 & 1961-1966)
• 40-Home Run Seasons: 6 (1954, 1955, 1961, 1962, 1964 & 1965)
• 50-Home Run Seasons: 2 (1955 & 1965)
• 100 RBI Seasons: 10 (1954, 1955 & 1959-1966)
• 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 12 (1954-1965)
• 200 Hits Seasons: 1 (1958)

Mays' Moment in the Sun

• "The Catch"

Quotes

• "They invented the All-Star game for Willie Mays." ~ Ted Williams
• "Would've been a Red Sox if Yawkey wasn't deliciously rascist. Pretty good player." ~ SoSH User offermania

Trivia

• Member of the World Series Champion New York Giants in 1954.
• Willie Mays was the on-deck batter when Bobby Thomson hit his famous pennant-winning home run, "The Shot Heard 'Round the World," on October 3, 1951

Transactions

• June 20, 1950: Signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent.
• May 11, 1972: Traded by the San Francisco Giants to the New York Mets for Charlie Williams and $50,000.

External Links

• Willie Mays: Hall of Fame Page
• Baseball-Reference.com - Career Statistics and Analysis