To Absent Friends - Willie Mays

 

Willie Mays died yesterday at the age of 93.

Willie Mays.

I mean, really, what more needs to be said.  There is certainly nothing that I can add to the marvelous obituaries that have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Associated Press and other places.  You can find them all over the internet, so I won't reiterate all of the numbers that comprised Mays' amazing career, but I'll throw out a few personal thoughts.

When Three Rivers Stadium opened in 1970, Pittsburgh fans were able, for the first time ever, to buy tickets in centerfield.  The 200 Level of Three Rivers between the foul poles were general admission, and I can remember sitting in the first row of those seats one night for a game between the Pirates and Giants, which put us directly behind the Say Hey Kid himself.  What I particularly remember about that was watching Mays talking to his left and right fielders constantly through the game, and waving them into position with each different Pirates batter.  No need for the outfielders to have index cards from front office analytics geeks in their pockets telling them where to play when Willie Mays was their quarterback in centerfield.

I can also remember watching a game on TV when Mays was caught in a rundown, and proceeded to make it last long enough for the infielder to botch it up and allow Willie to get the the forward base.  My brother, Jim, watching the game with me said, "Only Mays can get out of rundowns like that, and I've seen him do it a million times."  Okay, maybe not an exact quote, but that was the gist of it.

A younger work colleague once asked me who was the best ball player that  had ever seen in the flesh.  Well, here are some of the guys that I have seen play live and in person:  Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell, of course, and players like Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Ken Griffey Jr, Pete Rose, Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Alex Rodriguez, and Stan Musial, but I didn't really have to even think to answer because it was an easy question:  Willie Mays.

When Marilyn and I visited San Francisco in January 2015, we took a tour of AT&T Park.  Not unexpectedly, much of the Park is devoted to Willie Mays.  Seeing that I was wearing a Pirates windbreaker  at the time, the Tour Guide asked me if I had ever seen Roberto Clemente play.  Many times, I replied, to which he said, "Well, he was the second best outfielder ever."  My reply was that well, I'll give you that one.  Last year I had the occasion to meet Luis and Roberto Clemente Jr., and I told them that story.  They loved it.

He was the original Five Tool Player, and I feel fortunate to have been able to see him play, and the game may never see his like again.

RIP Willie Mays.

THE Catch at the Polo Grounds in the 1954 World Series.

I don't really have to give you the background on that one, do I?

A classic Mays pose.

Obviously taken at an All-Star game one year.  

Not a bad outfield, wouldn't you agree?

Presidential Medal of Freedom Awardee

The Grandstander outside of AT&T Park

January 2015

Mike and Mickey...and Hank and Barry and Willie

Spring Training opened yesterday, and rather than doing an extensive analysis of the Pirates, I thought that I would delay such ramblings and instead talk about a subject that has been niggling in the back of my mind for awhile.  It concerns Los Angeles Angels superstar Mike Trout, already a two time Most Valuable Player.

At some point during this off season, someone, probably on the MLB Network, probably after he was named the AL MVP  for the second time in his career, said that he is "this generation's Mickey Mantle." 

High praise for Mr. Trout, so I decided to do one of my famous spread sheets to compare the two of them at comparable stages in their careers, and this is what it looks like.

	Mike Trout	Mickey Mantle
Seasons	6	6
Games	811	808
BA	0.306	0.308
HR	168	173
HR/162 games	34	35
RBI	497	575
RBI/162 games	99	115
Hits	917	907
Hits/162 games	183	181
Runs	600	642
Runs/162 games	120	129

Through six seasons, Trout and Mantle are practically the same player.  The Mick outpaces Trout in both Runs Scored and Runs Batted In, which may be a function of the other players on their respective teams.  Otherwise, those "Trout Is Mantle" comparisons are not far off.

Then, I decided to throw in a couple of other players into the mix to see how Trout compares to them.  You might recognize them:

So, here is the expanded chart:

	Mike Trout	Hank Aaron	Barry Bonds	Mickey Mantle	Willie Mays
Seasons	6	6	6	6	6
Games	811	886	871	808	762
BA	0.306	0.323	0.269	0.308	0.311
HR	168	179	142	173	128
HR/162 games	34	33	26	35	27
RBI	497	617	563	575	509
RBI/162 games	99	113	84	115	108
Hits	917	1,137	837	907	903
Hits/162 games	183	209	156	181	192
Runs	600	612	563	642	531
Runs/162 games	120	112	105	129	113

I will only draw a couple of conclusions from these comparisons.

1. Trout certainly holds his own when compared to these four great players.  No doubt that in Trout, we are seeing a guy who can become one of the all time great players by the time his career is done.
2. Please don't bother pointing out that Bonds' numbers were rolled up in his Pre-Balco Era.  We all get it.
3. Perhaps the most striking aspect of this little chart are the stats of Hank Aaron.  When discussions of "who was the greatest ball player ever?" take place, I don't think that Aaron's name gets mentioned nearly often enough.

Okay, time to put the calculator away and start getting into Bucco Spring Training.  Time to worry about just which Ivan Nova shows up for the Pirates in 2017.

The 40th Anniversary Trip, Part III - AT&T Park

A part of the San Francisco portion of our recent trip was devoted to taking the guided tour of the home of the San Francisco Giants, AT&T Park.

Whenever rankings of major league baseball parks are complied and published, you usually see AT&T Park and PNC Park listed at the top of these lists.  Now being a Pittsburgher and a Pirates fan, I will probably never concede that any place is better than PNC Park, but I have to be honest with you, AT&T Park is really nice, and I can see how this place finds its way to the top of many lists.  

You begin your tour from the Giants clubhouse store, work your way through various lounge areas and concourses, and take an elevator to the top level, whereupon you are directed to your first glimpse of the actual playing field, which is the picture you see at the top of this post.  It is called the "view level", and the view is spectacular, although it was enshrouded in fog the day we were there.  

Even from that top deck view, you get the sense that you are really close to the field, so the intimacy that is such a great part of the charm of PNC Park also exists in AT&T Park.

As you can see, we were ready for some action:

Of course, it would have been nice to actually see a ball game that day, but it was January, after all, and on the tour, we did see more of the Park than we would have if we were there on a game day.  Oh, and you can see by the cap I am wearing that I did spend some money in that Clubhouse Store before the tour began.

Here are some of the highlights:

The outside walls of the ball park feature plaques of a Giants "Wall of Fame".  I took pictures of these three Pirates nemeses of my youth:

For what it is worth, there is a plaque on this Wall for Bobby Bonds, but no such plaque for Barry Bonds, yet.

Inside what would be the equivalent of PNC's Lexus Club, you find these really beautiful  baseball murals.  The murals are huge, and these photos do not do them justice.

Throughout the Park, the Giants pay tribute to their history, including their roots in New York, but it is dominated, as you would expect, by one man.  Both on the outside, 

and the inside.

The tour takes you into the clubhouses and, on this day, the visitor's dugout, where I got the chance to channel my inner Clint Hurdle.

And I was also able to get some pictures of me with Giants heroes past

and present.

I am most grateful to Marilyn for forcing the issue of a tour of the ball park.  How many wives would do such a thing?  However, we both really enjoyed the two hours that we spent there. It was a worthwhile touristy thing to do, even in our limited time in the city.

San Francisco is really a terrific town, and I have detailed the rest of our visit in a post a few days ago.  A great town to visit, and one I would love to see again some time, and maybe on that next visit, the Giants will actually be playing a game that night.

Say Hey, Say Willie....Happy Birthday

Happy 82nd Birthday today to the guy who I consider to be the greatest baseball player that I have seen in my lifetime, Willie Mays.   To me, this is the guy to whom all outfielders, especially center fielders, should be compared.  The term "five tool player" was invented with Willie Mays in mind.