154-639: Major League Baseball Willie Howard Mays Jr. (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024), nicknamed " the Say Hey Kid ", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). 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
308-508: A Dallas spring training doubleheader against the New York Giants because of a golf outing. Several of the Giants, including Buck Herzog , called him names from the bench. Cobb retaliated by spiking Herzog during the second game, prompting a bench-clearing brawl in which Cobb ground Herzog's face in the dirt. The Dallas Police Department had to help stop the brawl, and Cobb was thrown out of
462-410: A force play . The Mets lost the series in seven games. Mays's 24 appearances on an All-Star Game roster are tied with Musial for second all-time, behind only Hank Aaron 's 25. He "strove for All-Star glory" according to Hirsch, taking the game seriously in his desire to support his NL teammates. In the first All-Star Game of 1959 , Mays hit a game-winning triple against Whitey Ford ; Bob Stevens of
616-658: A "young fellow named Cobb seems to be showing an unusual lot of talent." After about three months, Cobb returned to the Tourists and finished the season hitting .237 in 35 games. While with the Tourists he was mentored and coached by George Leidy, who emphasized pinpoint bunting and aggression on the basepaths. In August 1905, the management of the Tourists sold Cobb to the American League 's Detroit Tigers for $ 750 (equivalent to $ 25,433 in 2023). On August 8, 1905, Cobb's mother, Amanda, fatally shot his father, William, with
770-601: A $ 100 fine. This incident has often been retold with the elevator operator and the watchman both being black. However, recent scholarship has shown that all parties involved were white. On August 13, 1912, the same day the Tigers were to play the New York Highlanders at Hilltop Park , Cobb and his wife were driving to a train station in Syracuse that was to transport him to the game when three intoxicated men had stopped him on
924-626: A .659 slugging percentage , Mays batted .319 as the Giants finished in third. During the last game of the season, Durocher, who had supported Mays since his career had begun, told him he would not be returning as the Giants manager. When Mays responded, "But Mr. Leo, it's going to be different with you gone. You won't be here to help me," Durocher told his star, "Willie Mays doesn't need help from anyone." In 1956, Mays struggled at first to get along with new manager Bill Rigney , who publicly criticized him. The center fielder grew particularly annoyed after Rigney fined him $ 100 for not running to first base on
1078-465: A 1965 game against the Atlanta Braves impaired Mays's ability to throw. He kept the injury a secret from opposing players, making two or three practice throws before games to discourage them from running on him. On August 22, Mays acted as a peacemaker during a 14-minute brawl between the Giants and Dodgers after Marichal had bloodied Dodgers catcher John Roseboro with a bat. Mays grabbed Roseboro by
1232-429: A 1–1 tie in the sixth with no outs and Tito Fuentes on second base, a move that surprised reporters covering the game. The Giants lost 2–1. "I was thinking of the best way to get the run in," Mays explained the bunt, pointing out that McCovey and Bonds were due up next. The Giants lost the series in four games. After the season, Mays was honored as the winner of the inaugural Roberto Clemente Award , known at that time as
1386-618: A 22-year career as a Tiger in November 1926, and headed home to Augusta, Georgia . Shortly thereafter, Tris Speaker also retired as player-manager of the Cleveland Indians . The retirement of two great players at the same time sparked some interest, and it turned out that the two were coerced into retirement because of allegations of game-fixing brought about by Dutch Leonard , a former pitcher managed by Cobb. Leonard accused former pitcher and outfielder Smoky Joe Wood and Cobb of betting on
1540-658: A 6–2 victory over the Chicago Cubs . Mays was selected for the NL All-Star team ; he would be part of 24 straight NL All-Star teams over 20 seasons. Mays became the first player in history to hit 30 home runs before the All-Star Game. He had 36 home runs through July 28. Around that time, Durocher asked him to stop trying to hit them, explaining the team wanted him to reach base more often. Mays hit only five home runs after July 28 but upped his batting average from .326 to .345 to win
1694-407: A Cleveland hotel. Cobb got into an argument with the elevator operator around 2:15 a.m. when the man refused to take him to the floor where some of his teammates were having a card game. The elevator operator stated that he could only take Cobb to the floor where his room was. As the argument escalated, a night watchman approached and he and Cobb eventually got into a physical confrontation. During
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#17328377648301848-566: A Tigers–Indians game played in Detroit on September 25, 1919, in which they allegedly orchestrated a Tigers victory to win the bet. Leonard claimed proof existed in letters written to him by Cobb and Wood. Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis held a secret hearing with Cobb, Speaker and Wood. A second secret meeting among the AL directors led to the unpublicized resignations of Cobb and Speaker; however, rumors of
2002-528: A ball to the scoreboard at Philadelphia's Connie Mack Stadium . Mays, who had been playing closer to home plate than normal, ran at top speed after the ball. He caught it in midair and had to kick his legs forward to keep his head from hitting the ballpark's fence, but he held on to the ball. While he batted under .300 (.296) for the first time since 1956, he led the NL with 47 home runs and ranked second with 121 runs scored and 111 RBIs. A torn shoulder muscle sustained in
2156-461: A batting record set by Wee Willie Keeler , with four five-hit games in a season. This has since been matched by Stan Musial , Tony Gwynn and Ichiro Suzuki . On May 10, 1924, Cobb was honored at ceremonies before a game in Washington, D.C., by more than 100 dignitaries and legislators. He received 21 books, one for each year in professional baseball. At the end of 1925, Cobb was again embroiled in
2310-473: A batting title race, this time with one of his teammates and players, Harry Heilmann . In a doubleheader against the St. Louis Browns on October 4, 1925, Heilmann got six hits to lead the Tigers to a sweep of the doubleheader and beat Cobb for the batting crown, .393 to .389. Cobb and Browns player-manager George Sisler each pitched in the final game, Cobb pitching a perfect inning. Cobb announced his retirement after
2464-541: A center fielder (2,829), putouts as an outfielder (7,095), and ended his career behind only Ty Cobb in total games as an outfielder (2,842), ranking seventh in assists (188) and third in double plays (59) in center field. Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979 in his first year of eligibility, and was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999. Mays was awarded
2618-673: A child, and decided that he wanted to go professional one day; his father was vehemently opposed to this idea, but by his teenage years, he was trying out for area teams. He played his first years in organized baseball for the Royston Rompers, the semi-pro Royston Reds, and the Augusta Tourists of the South Atlantic League , who released him after only two days. He then tried out for the Anniston, Alabama based Anniston Steelers of
2772-706: A contract. The Boston Braves and the Brooklyn Dodgers both scouted him, but New York Giants scout Eddie Montague signed him to a $ 4,000 contract. Mays spent the rest of 1950 with the Class B Trenton Giants of the Interstate League , batting .353. Promoted to the Triple-A Minneapolis Millers of the American Association in 1951, he batted .477 in 35 games. Playing excellent defense, Mays
2926-487: A controlled environment, which eventually caused Mathewson to contract the tuberculosis that killed him on the eve of the 1925 World Series. On August 19, 1921, in the second game of a doubleheader against Elmer Myers of the Boston Red Sox , Cobb collected his 3,000th hit. Aged 34 at the time, he is still the youngest ballplayer to reach that milestone, and in the fewest at-bats (8,093). By 1920, Babe Ruth , sold to
3080-490: A couple of mostly discredited biographies that were released following his death. Cobb's reputation as a violent man was exaggerated by his first biographer, sportswriter Al Stump , whose stories about Cobb have been proven as sensationalized and largely fictional. While he was known for often violent conflicts, he spoke favorably about black players joining the Major Leagues and was a well-known philanthropist. Cobb
3234-543: A double and a single. As Ruth's popularity grew, Cobb became increasingly hostile toward him. He saw the Babe not only as a threat to his style of play, but also to his style of life. Perhaps what angered him the most about Ruth was that despite Babe's total disregard for his physical condition and traditional baseball, he was still an overwhelming success and brought fans to the ballparks in record numbers to see him challenge his own slugging records. On May 5, 1925, Cobb told
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#17328377648303388-478: A fast start in 1971, the year he turned 40. Against the Mets on May 31, he hit a game-tying eighth-inning home run, saved multiple runs with his defense at first base, and performed a strategic base-running maneuver with one out in the 11th inning, running slowly from second to third base to draw a throw from Tim Foli and allow Al Gallagher to reach first safely. Evading Foli's tag on the return throw to third, Mays scored
3542-445: A fight, several reporters came running and found Cobb and Schmidt wrestling on the ground. When the fight was broken up and Cobb had walked away, Schmidt remained behind and told the reporters that he saw Cobb assaulting Cummings and his wife and had intervened. Leerhsen speculates that this was just another one of Schmidt's assaults on Cobb and that once discovered, Schmidt made up a story that made him sound like he had assaulted Cobb for
3696-454: A final average of .408, twelve points lower than Cobb's .420, a 20th-century record which stood until George Sisler tied it and Rogers Hornsby surpassed it with .424, the record since then (until 2024) except for Hugh Duffy's .438 in the 19th century. I often tried plays that looked recklessly daring, maybe even silly. But I never tried anything foolish when a game was at stake, only when we were far ahead or far behind. I did it to study how
3850-569: A fly ball to center field, which Mays caught for the final out as the Giants advanced to the World Series against the Yankees. In Game 1 of the World Series, a 6–2 loss to New York, Mays recorded three hits. He would bat merely .250 in the series overall. The Series went all the way to a Game 7, which the Yankees led 1–0 in the bottom of the ninth. Matty Alou led off the inning with a bunt single but
4004-461: A game against the Athletics in 1907 [on September 30]... The Athletics had us beaten, with Rube Waddell pitching. They were two runs ahead in the 9th inning, when I happened to hit a home run that tied the score. This game went 17 innings to a tie, and a few days later, we clinched our first pennant. You can understand what it meant for a 20-year-old country boy to hit a home run off the great Rube, in
4158-536: A game-winning home run in the Giants' final regularly scheduled game of the year, forcing the team into a tie for first place with the Los Angeles Dodgers . The Giants faced the Dodgers in a three-game playoff series . With the Giants trailing 4–2 in the top of the ninth inning of Game 3, Mays hit an RBI single, eventually scoring as the Giants took a 6–4 lead. With two outs in the bottom of the inning, Lee Walls hit
4312-443: A great baseball player and I won't allow him to be driven off this club." The following year, 1906, Cobb became the Tigers' full-time center fielder and hit .316 in 98 games, setting a record for the highest batting average (minimum 310 plate appearances) for a 19-year-old (later bested by Mel Ott 's .322 average in 124 games for the 1928 New York Giants ). He never hit below that mark again. After being moved to right field, he led
4466-537: A home run of over 414 feet (126 m) against Carl Erskine . After he batted .250 in his first 20 games, Durocher moved him from third to fifth in the batting order and again encouraged him to stop attempting to pull the ball and try to get hits to right field. Mays changed his batting stance and stood straighter at the plate, keeping his feet closer together. He credited these adjustments with improving his batting average, as he batted .450 with 25 RBIs in his next 20 games. On June 25, he hit an inside-the-park home run in
4620-438: A long series against Jackson's Cleveland Naps . Fellow Southerners Cobb and Jackson were personally friendly both on and off the field. Cobb used that friendship to his advantage. Cobb ignored Jackson when Jackson tried to say anything to him. When Jackson persisted, Cobb snapped angrily back at him, making him wonder what he could have done to enrage Cobb. Cobb felt that it was these mind games that caused Jackson to "fall off" to
4774-571: A noble purpose. In 1908, Cobb attacked a black laborer in Detroit who complained when Cobb stepped into freshly poured asphalt; Cobb was found guilty of battery, but the sentence was suspended. In September 1907, Cobb began a relationship with The Coca-Cola Company that lasted the remainder of his life. By the time he died, he held over 20,000 shares of stock and owned bottling plants in Santa Maria, California , Twin Falls, Idaho , and Bend, Oregon . He
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4928-609: A pennant-winning game with two outs in the ninth." Despite great success on the field, Cobb was no stranger to controversy off it. As described in Smithsonian , "In 1907 during spring training in Augusta, Georgia, a black groundskeeper named Bungy Cummings, whom Cobb had known for years, attempted to shake Cobb's hand or pat him on the shoulder." The "overly familiar greeting infuriated" Cobb, who attacked Cummings. When Cummings' wife tried to defend him, Cobb allegedly choked her. The assault
5082-402: A pistol that William had purchased for her. Court records indicate that William Cobb had suspected Amanda of infidelity and was sneaking past his own bedroom window to catch her in the act. She saw the silhouette of what she presumed to be an intruder and, acting in self-defense, shot and killed her husband. Amanda Cobb was charged with murder and released on a $ 7,000 recognizance bond . She
5236-677: A pop fly that was caught by the catcher. He hit 36 homers and stole a career-high 40 bases, becoming only the second player to join the 30–30 club . Though his RBIs (84) and batting average (.296) were his lowest for nearly a decade, Barra observed that "Willie Mays was still the best all-around player in the National League." The relationship between Mays and Rigney improved in 1957. Rigney stopped giving Mays as much direction, trusting his star player's ability and instinct. In his 2010 authorized biography of Mays, James S. Hirsch wrote Mays had "one of his most exhilarating excursions" on April 21. In
5390-507: A press conference that day, "but I see so many people here who are my friends, I can't...Baseball and me, we had what you might call a love affair." Five days later, the Mets honored him on Willie Mays Night, proclaimed by New York City mayor John Lindsay , where he thanked the New York fans and said goodbye to baseball. In 66 games, Mays batted a career-low .211 with six home runs. Against the Reds in
5544-715: A record for outfielders; he led NL center fielders in double plays five times and assists three times. A classic example of a five-tool player , Mays finished his career with a .302 batting average. At the time of his retirement, he held the NL record for career runs scored (2,062), and ranked second in league history behind Stan Musial in games played (2,992), third in home runs (660), at bats (10,881), runs batted in (1,903), total bases (6,066), extra-base hits (1,323) and walks (1,464), fourth in hits (3,293), fifth in slugging percentage (.557), and eighth in doubles (523); his 140 triples ranked fourth among players active after 1945. He holds major league records for games as
5698-429: A record he shares with three other players. Cobb has more five-hit games (14) than any other player in major league history. He also holds the career record for stealing home (54 times) and for stealing second base, third base, and home in succession (4 times), and as the youngest player ever to compile 4,000 hits and score 2,000 runs. His combined total of 4,065 runs scored and runs batted in (after adjusting for home runs)
5852-653: A reporter that, for the first time in his career, he was going to try to hit home runs, saying he wanted to show that he could hit home runs but simply chose not to. That day, he went 6 for 6, with two singles, a double and three homers. The 16 total bases set a new AL record, which stood until May 8, 2012, when Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers hit four home runs and a double for a total of 18 bases. The next day Cobb had three more hits, two of which were home runs. The single his first time up gave him nine consecutive hits over three games, while his five homers in two games tied
6006-465: A season without hitting a ball over the fence. In the same season, Charles M. Conlon snapped the famous photograph of a grimacing Cobb sliding into third base amid a cloud of dirt, which visually captured the grit and ferocity of his playing style. Going into the final days of the 1910 season, Cobb had a .004 lead on Nap Lajoie for the American League batting title. The prize for the winner of
6160-455: A second award in September (.434, 4 home runs, 18 RBIs). He played in all but two games, hitting only 29 home runs. Horace Stoneham , the Giants' owner, made Mays the highest-paid player in baseball with a $ 75,000 contract for 1959. Mays had his first serious injury in 1959, a collision with Sammy White in spring training that resulted in 35 stitches in his leg, but he was ready by the start of
6314-410: A snarling wildcat." Tigers manager Hughie Jennings later acknowledged that Cobb was targeted for abuse by veteran players, some of whom sought to force him off the team. "I let this go for a while because I wanted to satisfy myself that Cobb has as much guts as I thought in the very beginning," Jennings recalled. "Well, he proved it to me, and I told the other players to let him alone. He is going to be
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6468-490: A special intervention by NL President Chub Feeney . However, the Mets won the NL East . On August 17, 1973, Mays hit his final (660th) home run against the Reds' Don Gullett . Having considered retirement all year, Mays finally told the Mets officially on September 9 that 1973 would be his last season. He made the announcement to the public on September 20. "I thought I'd be crying by now," he told reporters and Mets' executives at
6622-471: A sportswriter joked half the fine was for leaving, half was for returning. Things did not improve as the season began; Mays spent time on the disabled list early in the year and left the park before a game when he found out Berra had not put his name in the starting lineup. His speed and powerful arm in the outfield, assets throughout his career, were diminished in 1973, and he only made the All-Star team because of
6776-755: A story by sports columnist Grantland Rice , the film casts Cobb as "himself," a small-town Georgia bank clerk with a talent for baseball. Broadway critic Ward Morehouse called the movie "absolutely the worst flicker I ever saw, pure hokum." In October 1918, Cobb enlisted in the Chemical Corps branch of the United States Army and was sent to the Allied Expeditionary Forces headquarters in Chaumont, France . He served approximately 67 days overseas before being honorably discharged and returning to
6930-402: A throwing tendency of first baseman Hal Chase but having to wait two full years until the opportunity came to exploit it. By unexpectedly altering his own baserunning tendencies, he was able to surprise Chase and score the winning run of the game in question. On May 15, 1912, Cobb assaulted a heckler, Claude Lucker (often misspelled as Lueker), in the stands in New York's Hilltop Park where
7084-465: A wild pitch, and scored the only run of the game when McCovey hit into a double play; for his contributions, Mays won the All-Star Game MVP Award for the second time. Mays individually holds the records for most at bats (75), hits (23), runs scored (20), and stolen bases (six) by an All-Star; additionally, he is tied with Musial for the most extra-base hits (eight) and total bases (40), and he
7238-483: A wire fence in center field as he grasped a long fly ball hit by Joe Pepitone that might have given the AL the lead. The NL won 5–3, and Mays was named the All-Star Game MVP . With a leadoff home run against Milt Pappas in the 1965 All-Star Game , Mays set a record for most hits in his All-Star Games (21). Mays led off the 1968 All-Star Game with a single, moved to second on an error, advanced to third base on
7392-486: Is perfect. [No one has] the combined power and eye of Ruth." Tigers owner Frank Navin tapped Cobb to take over for Hughie Jennings as manager for the 1921 season, a deal he signed on his 34th birthday for $ 32,500 (equivalent to approximately $ 555,168 in today's terms ). The signing surprised the baseball world. Although Cobb was a legendary player, he was disliked throughout the baseball community, even by his own teammates. The closest Cobb came to winning another pennant
7546-418: Is still the highest ever produced by any major league player. Cobb also ranks first in games played by an outfielder in major league history (2,934). He retained many other records for almost a half century or more, including most career games played (3,035) and at bats (11,429 or 11,434 depending on source) until 1974 as well as the modern record for most career stolen bases (892) until 1977. He also had
7700-431: Is tied with Brooks Robinson for the most triples (three) in All-Star Game history. In appreciation of his All-Star records, Ted Williams said, "They invented the All-Star Game for Willie Mays." Baseball center fielder A center fielder , abbreviated CF , is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field . In
7854-544: Is trying to steal second base the center fielder must back up second base on throws from the catcher to second base in case the second baseman misses the catch or it is a bad throw. Ty Cobb As manager Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed " the Georgia Peach ", was an American professional baseball center fielder . A native of rural Narrows , Georgia , Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent 22 years with
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#17328377648308008-468: The San Francisco Chronicle wrote that " Harvey Kuenn gave it honest pursuit, but the only center fielder in baseball who could have caught it hit it." Mays scored the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning of the first All-Star Game of 1961 on a Clemente single in a 5–4 win for the NL. At Cleveland Stadium in the 1963 All-Star Game , he made the finest catch, snagging his foot under
8162-490: The Sporting News ranked Cobb third on its list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players." Cobb is credited with setting 9000 MLB records throughout his career. Cobb has won more batting titles than any other player, with 11 (or 12, depending on source). During his entire 24-year career, he hit .300 in a record 23 consecutive seasons, with the exception being his rookie season. He also hit .400 in three different seasons ,
8316-589: The Detroit Tigers and served as the team's player-manager for the last six, and he finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics . In 1936, Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame , receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes (98.2%); no other player received a higher percentage of votes until Tom Seaver in 1992. In 1999,
8470-584: The Milwaukee Braves at County Stadium . According to Mays, he had been unsure if he would even play because of food poisoning. Each of his home runs traveled over 400 feet (120 m). While Mantle and Roger Maris pursued Babe Ruth's single-season home run record in the AL, Mays and Orlando Cepeda battled for the home run lead in the NL. Mays trailed Cepeda by two home runs at the end of August (34 as opposed to 36), but Cepeda outhit him 10–6 in September to finish with 46, while Mays finished with 40. Mays led
8624-604: The NLCS , Mays helped restore order in Game 3 after Mets fans began throwing trash at Pete Rose following a brawl Rose had started with Bud Harrelson . Game 5 was the only one Mays played; he had a pinch-hit RBI single as the Mets won 7–2, clinching a trip to the 1973 World Series against the Oakland Athletics , October 13–21. A shoulder injury to Rusty Staub prompted the Mets to shift Don Hahn to right field and start Mays in center at
8778-623: The National League (NL) Rookie of the Year Award . On August 11, the Giants found themselves 13 + 1 ⁄ 2 games back of the Dodgers in the NL pennant race ; Brooklyn manager Charlie Dressen triumphantly predicted, "The Giants is dead." However, the Giants went 40–18 in the season's final 58 games, winning their last seven of the year to finish the regular season tied with the Dodgers. During
8932-558: The Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2015. Willie Howard Mays Jr. was born on May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama , a primarily black company town near Fairfield . His father, Cat Mays, was a talented baseball player with the black team at the local iron plant. Annie Satterwhite, his mother, was a gifted high school basketball and track star. To his family and close friends, and later to his teammates, Mays
9086-564: The United States Army had drafted him to serve in the Korean War . Before he left to join the Army, Mays played the first few weeks of the 1952 season with the Giants. He batted .236 with four home runs in 34 games. He surprised sportswriters like Red Smith when he drew cheers from fans of the Brooklyn Dodgers, the Giants' archrivals, in his last game before reporting. After his induction into
9240-540: The leadoff position in the batting lineup because Mays was hitting fewer home runs. Mays privately chafed at the move, later comparing it to " O. J. Simpson blocking for the fullback". He injured his knee in a collision with catcher Randy Hundley on July 29, forcing him to miss several games. On September 22, he hit his 600th home run, saying later, "Winning the game was more important to me than any individual achievements." In 117 games, he batted .283 with 13 home runs and 58 runs batted in. The Sporting News named Mays
9394-581: The most career hits until 1985 (4,189 or 4,191, depending on source) and most career runs until 2001. His .366 career batting average was officially listed as the highest-ever until 2024, when MLB decided to include Negro Leagues players in official statistics. Cobb's reputation, which includes a large college scholarship fund for Georgia residents financed by his early investments in Coca-Cola and General Motors , has been somewhat tarnished by allegations of racism and violence. These primarily stem from
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#17328377648309548-448: The 1907 season with a league-leading .350 batting average, 212 hits, 49 steals and 119 runs batted in (RBI). At age 20, he was the youngest player to win a batting championship and held this record until 1955, when fellow Detroit Tiger Al Kaline won the batting title while twelve days younger than Cobb had been. Reflecting on his career in 1930, two years after retiring, he told Grantland Rice , "The biggest thrill I ever got came in
9702-865: The 1960s "Player of the Decade" in January 1970. In an April game, Mays collided with Bobby Bonds while reaching his glove over the wall but made a catch to rob Bobby Tolan of a home run. Mays picked up his 3,000th hit against the Montreal Expos on July 18. "I don't feel excitement about this now," he told reporters afterwards. "The main thing I wanted to do was help Gaylord Perry win a game." In 139 games, Mays batted .291 with 94 runs scored, 28 home runs, and 83 RBIs. He scheduled his off days that season to avoid facing strikeout pitchers such as Bob Gibson or Tom Seaver . Though center field remained his primary position in 1971, Mays played 48 games at first base. He got off to
9856-537: The AL MVP by the Baseball Writers' Association of America . On May 12, 1911, playing against the New York Highlanders , he scored from first base on a single to right field, then scored another run from second base on a wild pitch. In the seventh inning, he tied the game with a two-run double. The Highlanders catcher vehemently argued the safe call at second base with the umpire in question, going on at such length that
10010-627: The Army on May 29, Mays reported to Fort Eustis in Virginia, where he spent much of his time playing for the Fort Eustis Wheels military baseball team with (and against) other major and minor leaguers, as well as serving as an athletic instructor in the Physical Training Department. It was at Fort Eustis that Mays learned the basket catch from fellow Fort Eustis outfielder Al Fortunato. Mays, by his own estimation, played 180 games for
10164-634: The Black Barons. In return, he could still play high school football. Mays helped Birmingham advance to the 1948 Negro World Series , which they lost 4–1 to the Homestead Grays . He hit .262 for the season and stood out because of his excellent fielding and base running. On May 28, 2024, Major League Baseball announced that it had integrated Negro league statistics into its records. Several major league teams were interested in signing Mays, but they had to wait until he graduated from high school to offer him
10318-531: The Commissioner's Award. Mays got off to a tortuous start to the 1972 season, batting .184 through his first 19 games. Before the season began, he had asked Stoneham for a 10-year contract with the Giants organization, intending to serve in an off-the-field capacity with them once his playing career was over. The Giants organization was having financial troubles, and Mays had to settle for a two-year, $ 330,000 contract. Mays quibbled with manager Charlie Fox , leaving
10472-541: The DiMaggio theory, as well as two other explanations: 1) the fans had heard so many wonderful things about Mays's play in New York that they expected him to be a better player than he actually was, and 2) Mays tended to keep to himself. Mays said in 1959 that he did not mind the booing, but he admitted in a 1961 article that the catcalls were bothering him. Whatever the reason, the boos, which had begun to subside after Mays's four–home-run game in 1961, grew even quieter in 1962, as
10626-539: The Giants a 1–0 victory. He considered the home run one of his most important, along with his first and the four-home-run game. In August, he won his third NL Player of the Month Award after batting .387 with eight home runs and 27 RBIs. He hit his 400th home run on August 27 against the St. Louis Cardinals , the tenth player to reach that mark. Mays finished the 1963 season batting .314 with 38 home runs and 103 RBIs, stealing only eight bases, his fewest since 1954. Normally
10780-465: The Giants enjoyed their best season since moving to San Francisco. Mays led the team in eight offensive categories in 1962: runs (130), doubles (36), home runs (49), RBIs (141), stolen bases (18), walks (78), on-base percentage (.384), and slugging percentage (.613). He finished second in NL MVP voting to Maury Wills , who had broken Ty Cobb 's record for stolen bases in a season. On September 30, Mays hit
10934-416: The Giants on May 14, Mays put New York ahead to stay with a fifth-inning home run, receiving ecstatic applause from the fans at Shea Stadium . Mays appeared in 88 games for the Mets in 1972, batting .250 in 244 at bats with eight home runs. In 1973, Mays showed up a day late to spring training, then left in the middle of it without notifying manager Yogi Berra beforehand. He was fined $ 1,000 upon returning;
11088-518: The Giants to the 1962 World Series , this time losing to the New York Yankees . He ended his career with a return to New York after an early season trade to the New York Mets in 1972, retiring after the team's trip to the 1973 World Series . He served as a coach for the Mets for the rest of the decade before rejoining the Giants as a special assistant to the president and general manager. Mays
11242-529: The Giants, pre-season favorites for the pennant, finished fifth out of eight NL teams. For the second time in three years, he only hit 29 home runs, but he led the NL with 190 hits and drove in 103 runs, batting .319 and stealing 25 bases. Alvin Dark was hired to manage the Giants before the start of the 1961 season, and the improving Giants finished in third place. Mays had one of his best games on April 30, 1961, hitting four home runs and driving in eight runs against
11396-479: The NL MVP voting, the ninth and final time he finished in the top five in the voting for the award. He batted .288 with 99 runs scored, 37 home runs, and 103 runs batted in; by season's end, only Babe Ruth had hit more home runs (714 to 542). Mays had 13 home runs and 44 RBIs through his first 75 games of 1967 but then went into a slump. On June 7, Gary Nolan of the Cincinnati Reds struck him out four times; this
11550-471: The NL's top-five in a variety of offensive categories: runs scored (112, third) batting average (.333, second), and home runs (35, fourth). In 1957, Mays became the fourth player in major league history to join the 20–20–20 club (doubles, triples, homers). He stole 38 bases that year, making him the second 20–20–20 club member (after Frank Schulte in 1911) to steal at least 20 bases. This gave him his second straight 30–30 club season. Dwindling attendance and
11704-459: The Polo Grounds during the eighth inning of Game 1. The catch prevented two Indians' runners from scoring, preserving a tie game. "The Catch transcended baseball" Barra wrote, and Larry Schwartz of ESPN said of all the catches that Mays made, "it is regarded as his greatest". Mays did not even look at the ball for the last twenty feet as he ran, saying later he realized he had to keep running if he
11858-575: The Tigers to three consecutive American League pennants in 1907, 1908 and 1909. Detroit would lose each World Series (to the Cubs twice and then the Pirates); however, Cobb's postseason numbers were far below his career standard. Cobb did not get another opportunity to play on a pennant-winning team. In 1907, Cobb reached first and then stole second, third and home. He accomplished the feat four times during his career, still an MLB record as of 2022. He finished
12012-514: The Tigers were playing the Highlanders. Lucker, described by baseball historian Frank Russo as "a Tammany Hall lackey and two-bit punk," often berated Cobb when Detroit visited New York. In this game, the two traded insults through the first couple of innings. Cobb at one point went to the Highlander dugout to look for the Highlanders' owner to try to have Lucker ejected from the game, but his search
12166-583: The United States. He was given the rank of captain underneath the command of Major Branch Rickey , the president of the St. Louis Cardinals . Other baseball players serving in this unit included Captain Christy Mathewson and Lieutenant George Sisler . All of these men were assigned to the Gas and Flame Division, where they trained soldiers in preparation for chemical attacks by exposing them to gas chambers in
12320-450: The Wheels, and missed about 275 games for the Giants because of his military service. Mays' time playing for the Wheels ended on July 28, 1953, after he chipped a bone in his left foot while sliding into third base, necessitating a 6-week stint in a cast. Discharged on March 1, 1954, he reported to Giants' spring training camp the following day. Mays began the 1954 season on Opening Day with
12474-596: The Year Award in 1951 after hitting 20 home runs to help the Giants win their first pennant in 14 years. In 1954, he won the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award , leading the Giants to their last World Series title before their move to the West Coast. His over-the-shoulder catch in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series is one of the most famous baseball plays of all time. After the Giants moved to San Francisco, Mays went on to win another MVP Award in 1965 and also led
12628-467: The ballpark prior to games. The Victorian duplex in which Cobb lived still stands. Three weeks after his mother killed his father, Cobb debuted in center field for the Detroit Tigers. On August 30, 1905, in his first major league at bat, he doubled off Jack Chesbro of the New York Highlanders . Chesbro had won 41 games the previous season. Cobb was 18 years old at the time, the youngest player in
12782-433: The batting order on June 2, suggesting that Mays stop trying to pull the ball and just make contact. Mays responded with four hits over his next two games on June 2 and 3. By the end of the month, he had pushed his batting average to over .300. He would bat close to .290 for the rest of the season. Although his .274 average, 68 RBIs, and 20 home runs (in 121 games) would rank among the lowest totals of his career, he still won
12936-472: The batting title with a .324 average, but Detroit suffered another loss in the World Series. In August 1908, Cobb married Charlotte ("Charlie") Marion Lombard, the daughter of prominent Augustan Roswell Lombard. In the offseason, the couple lived on her father's Augusta estate, The Oaks , until they moved into their own house on Williams Street in November 1913. The Tigers won the AL pennant again in 1909. During that World Series, Cobb's last, he stole home in
13090-758: The bench with his Birmingham Industrial League team at ten. His favorite baseball player growing up was Joe DiMaggio ; other favorites were Ted Williams and Stan Musial . Mays played several sports at Fairfield Industrial High School . On the basketball team, he led players at all-black high schools in Jefferson County in scoring. Mays played quarterback , fullback and punter for the football team. Though he turned 18 in 1949, Mays did not graduate from Fairfield until 1950, which journalist Allen Barra calls "a minor mystery in Willie's life". Mays's professional baseball career began in 1948 when he played briefly during
13244-407: The catch, he must position himself behind the corner outfielder as backup. The center outfielder is the captain of the outfield and has the authority to call off the corner fielders when he has a better chance to catch the ball. Aside from requiring more speed and range, the center field position is slightly easier to field because balls tend to fly on a straight path, rather than curving as they do for
13398-438: The course of which Cobb knocked down Herzog about six times while Herzog only knocked Cobb down once. The scuffle left Herzog's face bloodied and his eyes nearly shut. With Herzog vowing revenge, Cobb skipped the rest of the exhibition series against the Giants, heading to Cincinnati to train with the Reds, who were managed by Cobb's friend Christy Mathewson . However, Cobb later expressed the deepest respect for Herzog because of
13552-409: The decade topped the major leagues. He was the first NL player to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in the same season , the first player in history to reach both 300 home runs and 300 stolen bases, and the second player and the first right-handed hitter to hit 600 home runs. Mays also set standards for defensive brilliance, winning 12 consecutive Gold Glove Awards after their creation in 1957, still
13706-497: The deepest center field in baseball (483 feet; 147 m). Mays appeared in his first major league game on May 25 against the Philadelphia Phillies at Shibe Park , batting third. He had no hits in his first 12 at bats in the major leagues, but in his 13th on May 28, he hit a home run off Warren Spahn over the left-field roof of the Polo Grounds. Mays went hitless in his next 12 at bats, and Durocher dropped him to eighth in
13860-514: The desire for a new ballpark prompted the Giants to move to San Francisco following the 1957 season. In the final Giants' home game at the Polo Grounds on September 29, 1957, fans gave Mays a standing ovation in the middle of his final at bat, after Pirates' pitcher Bob Friend had already thrown a pitch to him. In 1958, Rigney wanted Mays to challenge Babe Ruth 's record of 60 home runs in a season. Consequently, Rigney did not play Mays much in spring training hoping to use his best hitter every day of
14014-405: The field, and several profanity-laced shouting matches. For example, Cobb and umpire Billy Evans arranged to settle their in-game differences through fisticuffs under the grandstand after the game. Members of both teams were spectators, and broke up the scuffle after Cobb had knocked Evans down, pinned him and began choking him. In 1909, Cobb was arrested for assault for an incident that occurred in
14168-541: The field. According to him, this incident led to the formation of a players' union, the "Ballplayers' Fraternity" (formally, the Fraternity of Professional Baseball Players of America), an early version of what is now called the Major League Baseball Players Association , which garnered some concessions from the owners. During his career, Cobb was involved in numerous other fights, both on and off
14322-458: The fifth player to reach the mark. Warren Spahn, off whom Mays hit his first career home run, was now his teammate. After the home run, Spahn asked him, "Was it anything like the same feeling?" Mays replied, "It was exactly the same feeling. Same pitch, too." The next night, Mays hit one that he considered his most dramatic. With the Giants trailing the Houston Astros by two runs with two outs in
14476-473: The fight, Cobb produced a penknife and slashed the watchman across the hand. Cobb later claimed that the watchman, who had the upper hand in the fight, had his finger in Cobb's left eye and that Cobb was worried he was going to have his sight ruined. The fight finally ended when the watchman produced a gun and struck Cobb several times in the head, knocking him out. Cobb would later plead guilty to simple assault and pay
14630-533: The game against the Phillies, Mays reached second base on an error, stole third, and scored the winning run on a Hank Sauer single, all on plays close enough that he had to slide to make each one. He stole home in a 4–3 loss to the Cubs on May 21. The 1957 season was the first in which the Gold Glove Awards were presented. Mays won the first of 12 consecutive Gold Gloves for his play in center field. He finished in
14784-549: The game. Both teams were staying at the Oriental Hotel, and at dinner that evening, Herzog walked up to Cobb and challenged him to a fight. The two met an hour later in Cobb's room, where the Tiger outfielder had prepared for the fight by moving furniture out of the way and pouring water on the floor. Cobb's leather-soled shoes enabled him to get better footing than Herzog, who wore tennis shoes. The fight lasted for thirty minutes, over
14938-491: The league by almost a year. Although he hit only .240 in 41 games, he signed a $ 1,500 contract to play for the Tigers in 1905. As a rookie, Cobb was subject to severe hazing by his veteran teammates, who were jealous of the young prospect. The players smashed his homemade bats, nailed his cleats in the clubhouse, doused his clothes before tying knots in them, and verbally abused him. Cobb later attributed his hostile temperament to this experience: "These old-timers turned me into
15092-592: The league in on-base percentage (.425) for only the second time, though his 123 strikeouts were a career-high. He batted .271 and stole 23 bases. The Giants won the NL West in 1971, returning Mays to the playoffs for the first time since 1962. In the NL Championship Series (NLCS) against the Pirates, Mays had a home run and three RBIs in the first two games. In Game 3, Mays attempted an unsuccessful sacrifice bunt in
15246-466: The league in stolen bases for the fourth year in a row. After spending their first two years in San Francisco at Seals Stadium , the Giants moved into the new Candlestick Park in 1960. Initially, the stadium was expected to be conducive to home runs, but unpredictable winds affected Mays's power, and he hit only 12 at home in 1960. He found the stadium tricky to field but figured out how to play it as
15400-486: The league with 129 runs scored and batted .308 with 123 RBIs. Though he had continued to play at a high level since coming to San Francisco, Mays endured booing from the San Francisco fans during his first four seasons in California. Barra speculates this may have been because San Francisco fans were comparing Mays unfavorably with Joe DiMaggio, the most famous center fielder ever to come from San Francisco. Hal Wood mentioned
15554-526: The man had no hands, to which Cobb reportedly retorted, "I don't care if he got no feet!" According to Russo, the crowd cheered Cobb on in the fight. Though extremely rare in the 21st century, attacking fans was not so unusual an activity in the early years of baseball. Other notable baseball stars who assaulted heckling fans include Babe Ruth , Cy Young , Rube Waddell , Kid Gleason , Sherry Magee , and Fred Clarke . The league suspended him . His teammates, though not fond of Cobb, went on strike to protest
15708-479: The ninth, Mays swung and missed at Claude Raymond 's first two pitches, took three balls to load the count, and fouled off three pitches before homering on the ninth pitch. The Giants won 6–5 in 10 innings. Mays won his second MVP award in 1965 behind a career-high 52 home runs, in what Barra said "may very well have [been] his best year". He batted .317, leading the NL in on-base percentage (.400) and slugging percentage (.645). The span of 11 years between his MVP awards
15862-424: The numbering system used to record defensive plays, the center fielder is assigned the number 8. Outfielders must cover large distances, so speed, instincts and quickness to react to the ball are key. They must be able to catch fly balls above their heads and on the run. They must be able to throw the ball accurately over a long distance to be effective. As well as the requirements above, the center fielder must be
16016-502: The other Highlanders infielders gathered nearby to watch. Realizing that no one on the Highlanders had called time, Cobb strolled unobserved to third base and then casually walked towards home plate as if to get a better view of the argument. He then suddenly broke into a run and slid into home plate for the eventual winning run. It was performances like this that led Branch Rickey to say later that Cobb "had brains in his feet." Describing his gameplay strategy in 1930, he said, "My system
16170-409: The other outfield positions. A center fielder's vision and depth perception is a coveted skill and must be above average. Because the position requires a good arm and fast legs, center field is generally where the team puts its best all-around athletes; as a result, center fielders are often fine hitters as well. Many center fielders are renowned as excellent batters and base runners. When a base runner
16324-522: The other team reacted, filing away in my mind any observations for future use. —Ty Cobb in The New York Times Cobb led the AL that year in numerous other categories, including 248 hits, 147 runs scored, 127 RBI, 83 stolen bases, 47 doubles, 24 triples and a .621 slugging percentage . Cobb hit eight home runs but finished second in that category to Frank Baker , who hit eleven. He was awarded another Chalmers car, this time for being voted
16478-410: The outfielder who has the best combination of speed and throwing distance. The center fielder "covers more 'grass' than any other player" (see photo) and, most likely, will catch the most fly balls. The position also has the greatest responsibility among the three outfielders for coordinating their play to prevent collisions when converging on a fly ball, and on plays where the center fielder does not make
16632-444: The pennant race, Mays's fielding and strong throwing arm were instrumental in several important Giants' victories. Mays was in the on-deck circle on October 3 when Bobby Thomson hit a three-run homer to win the three-game NL tie-breaker series 2–1. The Giants met the New York Yankees in the 1951 World Series . In Game 1, Mays, Hank Thompson , and Monte Irvin composed the first all-black outfield in major league history. For
16786-478: The previous year defending himself on several occasions from assaults by Schmidt, with Schmidt often coming out of nowhere to blindside Cobb. On that day, several reporters did see Cummings, who appeared to be "partially under the influence of liquor," approach Cobb and shout "Hello, Carrie!" (the meaning of which is unknown) and go in for a hug. Cobb then pushed him away, which was the last interaction that anyone saw between Cobb and Cummings. Shortly thereafter, hearing
16940-412: The record set by Cap Anson of the old Chicago NL team in 1884. By the end of the series Cobb had gone 12 for 19 with 29 total bases, and afterwards reverted to his old playing style. Even so, when asked in 1930 by Grantland Rice to name the best hitter he'd ever seen, Cobb answered, "You can't beat the Babe. Ruth is one of the few who can take a terrific swing and still meet the ball solidly. His timing
17094-532: The regular season. As he had in 1954, Mays vied for the NL batting title until the final game of the season. Moved to the leadoff slot the last day to increase his at bats, Mays collected three hits in the game to finish with a career-high .347, but Philadelphia's Richie Ashburn batted .350. Mays shared the inaugural NL Player of the Month award with Stan Musial in May, batting .405 with 12 home runs and 29 runs batted in; he won
17248-407: The renamed New York Yankees from the Boston Red Sox , had established himself as a power hitter, something Cobb was not considered to be. When his Tigers showed up in New York to play the Yankees for the first time that season, writers billed it as a showdown between two stars of competing styles of play. Ruth hit two homers, a triple, and two singles during the series, compared to Cobb's two hits of
17402-613: The rest of his career in the National League (NL), playing for the New York / San Francisco Giants and New York Mets . Born in Westfield, Alabama , Mays was an all-around athlete. He joined the Black Barons of the Negro American League in 1948, playing with them until the Giants signed him upon his graduation from high school in 1950. He debuted in MLB with the Giants and won the Rookie of
17556-402: The same year where Cobb had allegedly grown pessimistic and was quoted as saying: "It seems I am a burden to the Detroit club, as a trespasser of its rules. If that be the case, let Mr. Navin put a price on me and I'll take a chance on being able to negotiate my own release. I don't think I shall ever play ball again. This is positively my last statement in this matter." This attributed statement
17710-492: The scandal led Judge Landis to hold additional hearings in which Leonard refused to participate. Cobb and Wood admitted to writing the letters, but claimed that a horse-racing bet was involved and that Leonard's accusations were in retaliation for Cobb's having released him from the Tigers, thereby demoting him to the minor leagues . Speaker denied any wrongdoing. On January 27, 1927, Judge Landis cleared Cobb and Speaker of any wrongdoing because of Leonard's refusal to appear at
17864-473: The season progressed. When a fly ball was hit, he would count to five before giving pursuit, enabling him to judge the wind's effect. He hit two home runs on June 24 and stole home in a 5–3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds . On September 15, he tied an NL record with three triples in an 11-inning, 8–6 win over the Phillies. "I don't like to talk about 1960," Mays said after the final game of a season in which
18018-614: The season. Against the Reds in August, Mays broke a finger but kept it a secret to prevent opposing pitchers from targeting it. In September 1959, the Giants led the NL pennant race by two games with only eight games to play, but a sweep by the Dodgers began a stretch of six losses in those final games, dooming them to a third-place finish. Mays had hits in three out of 10 at bats in the Dodger series but some San Francisco fans still booed him. In 1959, Mays batted .313 with 34 home runs and 113 RBIs, leading
18172-469: The second game, igniting a three-run rally, but that was the high point for him, finishing with a lowly .231, as the Tigers lost to Honus Wagner and the powerful Pirates in seven games. Although he performed poorly in the postseason, he won the Triple Crown by hitting .377 with 107 RBI and nine home runs, all inside the park , thus becoming the only player of the modern era to lead his league in home runs in
18326-556: The semipro Tennessee–Alabama League , with his father's stern admonition ringing in his ears: "Don't come home a failure!" After joining the Steelers for a monthly salary of $ 50, Cobb promoted himself by sending several postcards written about his talents under different aliases to Grantland Rice , the Atlanta Journal sports editor. Eventually, Rice wrote a small note in the Journal that
18480-405: The series, Mays hit poorly as the Giants lost the series in six games. In Game 5, he hit a consequential fly ball , which DiMaggio and Yankee rookie Mickey Mantle pursued. DiMaggio called Mantle off at the last second; as he stopped, Mantle got his cleat stuck in an open drainpipe, suffering a knee injury that would affect him the rest of his career. Soon after the 1951 season ended, Mays learned
18634-453: The slump. He finally set the record May 4. Despite nursing an injured thigh muscle on September 7, Mays reached base in the 11th inning of a game against the Dodgers with two outs, then attempted to score from first base on a Frank Johnson single. On a close play, umpire Tony Venzon initially ruled him out, then changed the call when he saw Roseboro had dropped the ball after Mays collided with him. San Francisco won 3–2. Mays finished third in
18788-660: The sport's most unlikely complete games . The pre-1901 record for the most hits and runs given up in a game is held by the Cleveland Blues ' Dave Rowe . Primarily an outfielder, Rowe pitched a complete game on July 24, 1882, giving up 35 runs on 29 hits. The current post-1900 record for most hits in a nine-inning game is 31, set in 1992 by the Milwaukee Brewers against Toronto; however, the Blue Jays used six pitchers. The strike ended when Cobb urged his teammates to return to
18942-509: The stadium before the start of a doubleheader on April 30 without telling him. On May 11, 1972, Mays was traded to the New York Mets for pitcher Charlie Williams and an undisclosed amount rumored to be $ 100,000. The Mets agreed to keep his salary at $ 165,000 a year for 1972 and 1973, promising to pay Mays $ 50,000 a year for 10 years after he retired. Mays had remained popular in New York, and owner Joan Payson had long wanted to bring him back to his major league roots. In his Mets debut against
19096-478: The start of the Series. He stumbled four times in the first two games, including a fielding error in Game 2 that allowed the Athletics to tie the game and force extra innings. Mays's last hit came later in the same game, an RBI single against Rollie Fingers that snapped a 7–7 tie in the 12th inning of a 10–7 victory. His final at bat came in Game 3, on October 16, 1973, where he pinch-hit for Tug McGraw and grounded into
19250-399: The station for the game. Cobb refused to speak any further of the issue. He would go on to hit 2–3 with two singles and a run scored, as well as batting .418. The Tigers lost 2–3. In 1913, Cobb signed a contract worth $ 12,000 for the six-month season (equivalent to $ 369,939 in 2023), making him likely the first baseball player in history to be paid a five-figure salary. This occurred in
19404-551: The summer with the Chattanooga Choo-Choos , a Negro minor league team . Later that year, Mays joined the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League , where he was known as "Buck". The Black Barons were managed by Piper Davis , a teammate of Mays's father on the industrial team. When Fairfield Industrial principal E. T. Oliver threatened to suspend Mays for playing professional ball, Davis and Mays's father worked out an agreement. Mays would only play home games for
19558-496: The suspension, and the lack of protection of players from abusive fans, before the May 18 game in Philadelphia. For that one game, Detroit fielded a replacement team made up of hastily recruited college and sandlot players plus two Tiger coaches and lost 24–2, thereby setting some of Major League Baseball's modern-era (post-1900) negative records, notably the 26 hits in a nine-inning game allowed by Allan Travers , who pitched one of
19712-624: The team's first batting title since Bill Terry 's in 1930. Hitting 41 home runs, Mays won the NL Most Valuable Player Award and the Hickok Belt . The Giants won the NL pennant and the 1954 World Series , sweeping the Cleveland Indians in four games. The 1954 series is perhaps best remembered for " The Catch ", an over-the-shoulder running grab by Mays of a long drive off the bat of Vic Wertz about 425 feet (130 m) from home plate at
19866-438: The third batter in the lineup, Mays was moved to fourth in 1964 before returning to third in subsequent years. On May 21, Dark named Mays the Giants' captain, making Mays the first African-American captain of an MLB team. "You deserve it," Dark told Mays. "You should have had it long before this." Against the Phillies on September 4, Mays made what Hirsch called "one of the most acrobatic catches of his career". Rubén Amaro Sr. hit
20020-423: The title was a Chalmers automobile . Cobb sat out the final two games to preserve his average. Lajoie hit safely eight times in a doubleheader but six of those hits were bunt singles. Later it was rumored that the opposing manager had instructed his third baseman to play extra deep to allow Lajoie to win the batting race over the generally disliked Cobb. Although Cobb was credited with a higher batting average, it
20174-502: The waist and helped him off the field, then tackled Lou Johnson to keep him from attacking an umpire. Johnson kicked him in the head and nearly knocked him out. After the brawl, Mays hit a game-winning three-run home run against Sandy Koufax , but he did not finish the game, feeling dizzy after the home run. Mays won his fourth and final NL Player of the Month award in August 1965 (.363, 17 home runs, 29 RBIs). On September 13, he hit his 500th career home run off Don Nottebart , becoming
20328-517: The way the infielder had conducted himself in the fight. In 1917, Cobb hit in 35 consecutive games, still the only player with two 35-game hitting streaks (including his 40-game streak in 1911). He had six hitting streaks of at least 20 games in his career, second only to Pete Rose 's eight. Also in 1917, Cobb starred in the motion picture Somewhere in Georgia for a sum of $ 25,000 plus expenses (equivalent to approximately $ 595,000 today ). Based on
20482-406: The way. When Cobb had gotten out of the car to confront the men, they had asked for money and instigated a physical fight, with Cobb defending himself from one of the men by punching him in the chin as another had fled the scene. After being grabbed by the neck by another man, the man had pulled a knife and stabbed him in the back before he forced him away and returned to his car to continue driving to
20636-569: The winning run on a sacrifice fly. He had 15 home runs and a .290 average at the All-Star break but faded down the stretch, only hitting three home runs and batting .241 for the rest of the year. One reason he hit so few home runs was that Mays walked 112 times, 30 more times than he had at any point in his career. This was partly because Willie McCovey , who often batted behind Mays in the lineup, missed several games with injuries, causing pitchers to pitch carefully to Mays so they could concentrate on getting less-skilled hitters out. Subsequently, Mays led
20790-665: The year, the first time since 1958 he had failed to reach 100. Before a game in Houston on May 6, 1968, Astros owner Roy Hofheinz presented Mays with a 569-pound birthday cake for his 37th birthday—the pounds represented every home run Mays had hit in his career. After sharing some of it with his teammates, Mays sent the rest to the Texas Children's Hospital . He played 148 games and upped his batting average to .289, accumulating 84 runs scored, 144 hits, 23 home runs, and 79 runs batted in. In 1969, new Giants' manager Clyde King moved Mays to
20944-469: Was acquitted on March 31, 1906. Ty Cobb later attributed his ferocious play to his late father, saying, "I did it for my father. He never got to see me play ... but I knew he was watching me, and I never let him down." Cobb was initiated into Freemasonry in 1907, earning the 32nd degree in 1912. In 1911, Cobb moved to Detroit's architecturally significant and now historically protected Woodbridge neighborhood, from which he would walk with his dogs to
21098-439: Was Mays's last World Series appearance as a Giant. Mays reveled in the fact that he had finally won the support of San Francisco fans; "It only took them five years," he later said. Before the 1963 season, Mays signed a contract worth a record-setting $ 105,000 per season (equivalent to $ 1,040,000 in 2023). On July 2, when Spahn and Juan Marichal each threw 15 scoreless innings, Mays hit a 16th-inning home run off Spahn, giving
21252-458: Was a crusade." Baseball historian John Thorn said in the book Legends of the Fall , "He is testament to how far you can get simply through will. ... Cobb was pursued by demons." Cobb was having a tremendous year in 1911, which included a 40-game hitting streak . Still, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson led him by .009 points in the batting race late in the season. Near the end of the season, Cobb's Tigers had
21406-482: Was affectionately referred to as "Buck." His parents never married and separated when Mays was three. His father and two aunts, Sarah and Ernestine raised him. Sarah took young Willie to an African Methodist Episcopal Church every Sunday. Cat Mays worked as a railway porter and later at the steel mills in Westfield. Cat exposed Willie to baseball at an early age, playing catch with him at five and allowing him to sit on
21560-400: Was all offense. I believed in putting up a mental hazard for the other fellow. If we were five or six runs ahead, I'd try some wild play, such as going from first to home on a single. This helped to make the other side hurry the play in a close game later on. I worked out all the angles I could think of, to keep them guessing and hurrying." In the same interview, Cobb talked about having noticed
21714-473: Was also a celebrity spokesman for the product. In the offseason between 1907 and 1908, Cobb negotiated with Clemson Agricultural College of South Carolina , offering to coach baseball there "for $ 250 a month, provided that he did not sign with Detroit that season." This did not come to pass, however. The following season, the Tigers finished ahead of the Chicago White Sox for the pennant. Cobb again won
21868-442: Was an All-Star 24 times, tying for the second-most appearances in history. He led the NL in home runs four times and in slugging percentage five times while batting over .300 and posting 100 runs batted in (RBIs) ten times each. Mays was also at the forefront of a resurgence of speed as an offensive weapon in the 1950s, leading the league in stolen bases four times, triples three times, and runs twice; his 179 steals during
22022-449: Was born in 1886 in Narrows, Georgia , a small, unincorporated rural community of farmers. He was the first of three children born to William Herschel Cobb (1863–1905) and Amanda Chitwood Cobb (1871–1936). Cobb's father was a state senator. When he was still an infant, his parents moved to the nearby town of Royston , where he grew up. By most accounts, he became fascinated with baseball as
22176-664: Was called up by the Giants on May 24, 1951. Initially, Mays was reluctant to accept the promotion because he did not believe he was ready to face major league pitchers. Stunned, Giants manager Leo Durocher called Mays directly and said, "Quit costing the ball club money with long-distance phone calls and join the team." It was also around this time that Mays was given his famous moniker: "The Say Hey Kid". The Giants hoped Mays would help them defensively in center field, as well as offensively. The Polo Grounds featured an unusual horseshoe shape, with relatively short left field (280 feet; 85 m) and right field (258 feet; 79 m) lines but
22330-664: Was first published on an April 19, 1913, edition of the Los Angeles Herald . Cobb did not play that day as the Tigers won 4–0 against the St. Louis Browns . In June 1914, Cobb pleaded guilty to disturbing the peace after pulling a revolver during an argument at a Detroit butcher shop. He was fined $ 50 (equivalent to $ 1,521 in 2023). In 1915, Cobb set the single-season record for stolen bases with 96, which stood until Dodger Maury Wills broke it in 1962. That year, he also won his ninth consecutive batting title, hitting .369. During 1917 spring training, Cobb showed up late for
22484-401: Was going to get the ball. The Giants won the game in the 10th inning on a three-run home run by Dusty Rhodes , with Mays scoring the winning run. Mays added base stealing to his talents, upping his total from eight in 1954 to 24 in 1955. In the middle of May, Durocher asked him to try for more home runs. Mays led the league with 51 but finished fourth in NL MVP voting. Leading the league with
22638-478: Was in 1924, when the Tigers finished in third place, six games behind the pennant-winning Washington Senators . The Tigers had also finished third in 1922, but 16 games behind the Yankees. Cobb blamed his lackluster managerial record (479 wins against 444 losses) on Navin, who was arguably even more frugal than he was, passing up several quality players Cobb wanted to add to the team. In fact, he had saved money by hiring Cobb to both play and manage. In 1922, Cobb tied
22792-478: Was in vain. He also asked for the police to intervene, but they refused. The situation climaxed when Lucker allegedly called Cobb a "half-nigger." Cobb, in his discussion of the incident in the Holmes biography, avoided such explicit words but alluded to Lucker's epithet by saying he was "reflecting on my mother's color and morals." He went on to state that he warned Highlander manager Harry Wolverton that if something
22946-474: Was later discovered in the 1970s that one game had been counted twice so that Cobb actually lost to Lajoie. As a result of the incident, AL president Ban Johnson was forced to arbitrate the situation. He declared Cobb the rightful owner of the title, but car company president Hugh Chalmers chose to award one to both Cobb and Lajoie. Cobb regarded baseball as "something like a war," future Tiger second baseman Charlie Gehringer said. "Every time at bat for him
23100-425: Was not done about that man, there would be trouble. No action was taken. At the end of the sixth inning, after being challenged by teammates Sam Crawford and Jim Delahanty to do something about it, Cobb climbed into the stands and attacked Lucker, who it turned out was handicapped (he had lost all of one hand and three fingers on his other hand in an industrial accident). Some onlookers shouted at him to stop because
23254-419: Was only stopped when catcher Charles "Boss" Schmidt knocked Cobb out. However, aside from Schmidt's statement to the press, no other corroborating witnesses to the assault on Cummings ever came forward and Cummings himself never made a public comment about it. Author Charles Leerhsen speculates that the assault on Cummings and his wife never occurred and that it was a total fabrication by Schmidt. Cobb had spent
23408-416: Was still at first two outs later when Mays came up with the Giants one out from elimination. Batting against Ralph Terry , he hit a ball into the right-field corner that might have been deep enough to score Alou, but Giants third base coach Whitey Lockman opted to hold Alou at third. The next batter, McCovey, hit a line drive that was caught by Bobby Richardson , and the Yankees won the deciding game 1–0. It
23562-433: Was the first time in his career this had happened, though the Giants still won the game 4–3. Afflicted by a fever on July 14, Mays left that day's game after the sixth inning because of fatigue and spent five days in a hospital. "After I got back into the lineup, I never felt strong again for the rest of the season," he recalled. In 141 games, Mays hit .263 with 83 runs scored, 128 hits, and 22 home runs. He had only 70 RBIs for
23716-488: Was the longest gap of any major leaguer who attained the distinction more than once, as were the 10 years between his 50 home run seasons . He scored 118 runs, the 12th year in a row he had scored at least 100 runs in a season. Mays tied Mel Ott 's NL record of 511 home runs on April 24, 1966, against the Astros. After that, he went for nine days without a home run. "I started thinking home run every time I got up," Mays explained
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