WEBVTT - 062224 Way Black History Fact - Willie Mays

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<v Speaker 1>Right now though, it is time for the Way Black

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<v Speaker 1>History Fact and Today's Way Black History Fact is sponsored

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<v Speaker 1>by Major Threads for Fashionable Innovative Sports, where checkmajorthreads dot com. Today,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna share a bit from Wikipedia about Willie Mays

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<v Speaker 1>for those who don't know. He passed away this past week,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, he did a lot in terms of

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<v Speaker 1>bringing folks around to black people playing in baseball. So

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<v Speaker 1>we're gonna share just a little bit about him and

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<v Speaker 1>just kind of commemorate his life. He lived a full life,

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<v Speaker 1>died very happy and content. So this isn't a sad moment.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a celebration. But Willie Howard Mays Junior born

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen thirty one through June eighteenth, twenty twenty four, nickname

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<v Speaker 1>the say Hey Kid, was an American professional baseball centerfielder

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<v Speaker 1>who played twenty three seasons in Major League Baseball. Regarded

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<v Speaker 1>as one of the greatest players ever, May's ranked second

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<v Speaker 1>behind only Babe Ruth on most all time lists, including

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<v Speaker 1>those of These Sporting News and ESPN. May's played in

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<v Speaker 1>the National League between nineteen fifty one and nineteen seventy

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<v Speaker 1>three for the New York Slash San Francisco Giants and

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<v Speaker 1>New York Mets. Born in West Alabama, Mayze was an

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<v Speaker 1>all around athlete. Several Major League teams were interested in

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<v Speaker 1>signing Mayze, but they had to wait until he graduated

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<v Speaker 1>high school to offer him a contract. Mayes's professional baseball

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<v Speaker 1>career began in nineteen forty eight, when he played briefly

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<v Speaker 1>during the summer with the Chattanooga chew Choose, a Negro

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<v Speaker 1>Minor League team. Later that year, Mays joined the Birmingham

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<v Speaker 1>Black Bearons of the Negro American League, where he was

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<v Speaker 1>known as Buck. The Black Barons were managed by Piper Davis,

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<v Speaker 1>a teammate of Mayz's father on the Industrial team. When

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<v Speaker 1>Fairfield Industrial principal et Oliver threatened to suspend Mays for

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<v Speaker 1>playing professional ball, Davis and Mayes's father worked out in

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<v Speaker 1>an agreement Mays would only play home games for the

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<v Speaker 1>Black Bearons. In return, he could still play high school football.

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<v Speaker 1>Mays helped Birmingham advance the nineteen forty eight Negro World Series,

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<v Speaker 1>where they lost four to one to the Homestead Grays.

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<v Speaker 1>He hit zero point twenty six to two for the

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<v Speaker 1>season and stood out because of his excellent fielding and

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<v Speaker 1>base running debut in MLB with the Giants and won

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<v Speaker 1>the Rookie of the Year award in nineteen fifty one

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<v Speaker 1>after hitting twenty home runs to help the Giants win

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<v Speaker 1>their first Pennant in fourteen years. In nineteen fifty four,

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<v Speaker 1>he won the NL Most Valuable Player Award, leading the

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<v Speaker 1>Giants to their last World Series title before their move

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<v Speaker 1>to the West Coast. His over the shoulder catch in

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<v Speaker 1>Game one of the nineteen fifty four World Series is

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<v Speaker 1>one of the most famous baseball plays of all time.

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<v Speaker 1>After the Giants moved to San Francisco, Mays went on

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<v Speaker 1>to win another MVP award in nineteen sixty five and

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<v Speaker 1>also led the Giants to the nineteen sixty two World Series,

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<v Speaker 1>this time losing to the New York Yankees. He ended

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<v Speaker 1>his career with a return to New York after a

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<v Speaker 1>mid season trade to the New York Mets in nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventy two, retiring after the team's trip to the nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventy three World Series. He served as coach for the

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<v Speaker 1>Mets for the rest of the decade and later rejoined

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<v Speaker 1>the Giants as a special assistant to the president and

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<v Speaker 1>general manager. The Giants retired his uniform number twenty four.

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<v Speaker 1>Remember that twenty four in nineteen seventy two, and the

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<v Speaker 1>address of their home stadium at and T. Bive is

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<v Speaker 1>twenty four Willie Mays Plaza. His bronze statue in front

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<v Speaker 1>of the main entrance is surrounded by twenty four palm trees,

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<v Speaker 1>and the right field wall is twenty four feet high.

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<v Speaker 1>Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen seventy nine, his first year of eligibility, and was

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<v Speaker 1>named to the Major League Baseball All Century Team in

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen ninety nine. Mays was awarded the Presidential Medal of

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<v Speaker 1>Freedom in two thousand and fifteen. So again, just an

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<v Speaker 1>amazing figure. You know, I'm not the biggest sports person,

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<v Speaker 1>but I definitely know who Willy Mays is. I definitely

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<v Speaker 1>know who Jackie Robinson is. And you know, this is

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<v Speaker 1>way black history, so we just thought we'd incorporated into

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<v Speaker 1>our way black history fact anything else can. And shout

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<v Speaker 1>out to Major League Baseball for finally making Negro league

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<v Speaker 1>statistics a part of Major League Baseball stats so that

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<v Speaker 1>Negro league players can be recognized as members of the

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<v Speaker 1>professional leagues and not some other side antillary league