The old saying that patience is a virtue does pay off at times. This was a book that I was not able to obtain as an advance copy and I had to wait for several months for a library version to become available - but it was worth the wait. Here is my review of this excellent book on the "Say Hey Kid", Willie Mays.
Title/Author:
“24: Life Stories and Lessons from the Say Hey Kid" by Willie Mays and John Shea
Tags:
Baseball, history, Giants, Mets, Negro Leagues, professional
Publish date:
March 5, 2020
Length:
352 pages
Rating:
5 of 5 stars (excellent)
Review:
No matter how one looks at his career – traditional statistics, analytics and advanced statistics or for those who saw him, the eye test – Willie Mays is certainly one of the greatest baseball players of all time. In this book co-authored with John Shea, Mays shares thoughts on a wide range of baseball topics with personal passages mingled in with Shea's writing during each chapter.
It's no coincidence that the book has 24 chapters to match the uniform number he wore for his two major league teams, the New York/San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets. The title may lead a reader to believe that there isn't much baseball in the book and instead is advice and lessons – that is not the case at all. Mays uses his baseball experiences to provide the lessons that he espouses at the end of each chapter. It isn't just about his exploits on the field as many of the stories are told after his playing days ended and some of the better chapters are during this section of the book, such as how happy he was when the Giants won three World Series championships in five years during the 2010's.
One chapter that stood out for me in the latter parts of the book was the chapter they wrote about Barry Bonds. Of course, being that Mays is the godfather of Barry and was very friendly with his father Bobby, one might expect this chapter to be less critical than many other writings have been of the polarizing Barry Bonds. What I found particularly interesting is how he has done what he could for Barry out of respect for his friend. When Bobby was near death, that was his request to Mays – to take care of Barry and Mays has kept that promise.
Since Mays played in the Negro Leagues before joining the Giants organization, there is a section on his time there and like many other writings about that league, it is filled with interesting stories and at the same time paints a disturbing picture of the racism faced by these players. That continues into his time in the major leagues, but in typical Willie Mays fashion, he exudes class and grace when talking about this time.
The same can be said for any other time one might believe that Mays might be upset. This would include the loss to the Yankees in the 1962 World Series and the suspension from baseball he and Mickey Mantle were given by Bowie Kuhn when the two of them were working for Bally's in Atlantic City. Also, speaking of Mantle, he is included in another chapter that alone makes the book a must-read: the debate that took New York City by storm in the 1950's – who was the better center fielder, Willie, Mickey or the Duke (Snider).
Any reader, no matter their level of interest in baseball, who knows about Willie Mays, should pick up this book as it is wonderful collection of stories written in an unconventional style about a one-of-a-kind baseball legend.
Book Format Read:
E-Book (Kindle)
Buying Links:
No comments:
Post a Comment