Willie Mays

Hall of Fame

Center Field

1951—1973

willie-mays-san-francisco-giants
Player LeveL
Legend
Top 100 Rank
#1
Center Field RANK
#1

Player Detail

Willie Howard
GIVEN NAME
Mays
SURNAME
May 6, 1931, in Westfield, AL
BORN
STILL LIVING
DIED
1951—1973
Playing Career
Played from 20-42
PLAYING AGE
New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
New York Mets
Teams Played For
Center Field
PRIMARY POSITION
San Francisco Giants
PRIMARY TEAM
1954
World Series titles
Say Hey Kid
NICKNAME
24
UNIFORM NUMBER
#3 IN LINEUP
BATTING ORDER
5-10 / 170
HEIGHT / WEIGHT
Right / Right
BATTED / THREW
May 25, 1951
Major League Debut
September 9, 1973
FINAL GAME

WHO IS Willie Mays?

Mays is best known for his amazing catch in the 1951 World Series. Willie Mays is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. He spent most of his career with the New York and San Francisco Giants, and also played for the New York Mets. During his career, Mays was known for his exceptional hitting, fielding, and baserunning abilities. He was a 24-time All-Star, a 12-time Gold Glove winner, and a two-time National League MVP. Mays won the 1954 World Series championship with the Giants. Mays’ career statistics are impressive, with 3,283 hits, 660 home runs, 1,903 runs batted in, and a career batting average of .302. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his first year of eligibility. He is the godfather to Barry Bonds.

80

HITTING

80

POWER

60

RUNNING

70

FIELDING

70

THROWING
20 = NOT MLB CALIBER
30 = WELL BELOW AVG
40 = Below Average
50 = MLB AVERAGE
60 = ABOVE AVG
70 = EXCELLENT
80 = RARE, ELITE
Mays went 1-for-26 to start his career in the National League. Then only hit was a home run off Warren Spahn.

Career Stats

GAMES HITS HR RBI AVG
2992
3283
660
1903
.302
26 ALL-STAR SELECTIONS
1954, 1965 NL MVP
All-Century Team

Teammate Team

CATCHER:
First Base:
Second Base:
Shortstop:
Third Base:
Left Field:
Center Field:
Right Field:
Pitcher:
pitcher:
manager:

BEST SEASON

1965 SF Giants

34 Years Old

.317
AVG
52
HR
112
RBI
118
RUNS
.398
OBP
177
HITS
21
2B
3
3B
.645
SLG
76
BB
9
SB
11.2
WAR
Greatest season ever by a center fielder when you consider everything.

SLASH LINE

AVG OBP SLG
.302
.384
.557

FOR THE TRADITIONALISTS.

VERSUS HIS PEERS

OPS LG OPS COMP
.941
.757
124.7

PLAYER OPS COMPARED TO AVERAGE PLAYER AT HIS POSITION IN HIS LEAGUE AND ERA. OPS = ON-BASE + SLUGGING.

Hall of Fame Worthy?

JAWS JAWS BY HOFER
114.9
60.2

PLAYER JAWS COMPARED TO HOF PLAYER AT HIS POSITION. JAWS = AVERAGE OF CAREER WAR & WAR7.

Willie Mays Per Season

PER 600 PLATE APPEARANCES COMPARED TO Contemporaries AT HIS POSITION

AB H R 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB TB TRB AVG OBP SLG OPS
Mays
523
158
99
25
7
32
91
70
73
16
291
230
.302
.384
.557
941
AVG CF
538
147
77
24
6
15
50
80
12
226
201
.273
.337
.419
.757

Willie Mays Rankings

AT Center Field BY THESE SOURCES

BASEBALL EGG HALL OF STATS BASEBALL SCHOLAR JAWS BILL JAMES
1
1
1
1
2
Updated THRU 2021
Updated THRU 2021
UPDATED THRU 2021
Updated THRU 2021
UPDATED THRU 2020

AT Center Field BY VALUE

CAREER LONG PEAK PRIME SHORT PEAK
1
1
1
2
CAREER WAR
WAR7
WAR 5 CONSECUTIVE
WAR3

Willie Mays PLAYER VALUE

WAR COMPARED TO AVERAGE HALL OF FAMER AT HIS POSITION

CAREER WAR7 WAR5C WAR3 WAR PER SN
156.2
73.6
52.3
32.9
8.45
74.6
45.7
33.5
22.8
5.28
BLUE = Willie Mays
GRAY = AVERAGE HALL OF FAME CF

WIN SHARES COMPARED TO AVERAGE HALL OF FAMER AT HIS POSITION

CAREER WIN SHARES 7 WIN SHARES 5C WIN SHARES 3 WS PER SN
643.1
278.5
210.0
125.5
34.8
373.6
214.5
156.7
102.8
28.1
BLUE = Willie Mays
GRAY = AVERAGE HALL OF FAME CF

— Explanation of Advanced Statistics —

Wins Above Replacement is a non-standardized sabermetric statistic developed to sum up a player’s total contributions to his team. A player’s WAR value is claimed to be the number of additional wins his team has achieved above the number of expected team wins if that player were substituted with a replacement-level player:

A player’s best seven seasons according to his Wins Above Replacement (WAR). Also called LONG PEAK.

A player’s best five consecutive seasons according to his Wins Above Replacement (WAR). Also called PLAYER PRIME.

A player’s best three seasons according to his Wins Above Replacement (WAR). Also called SHORT PEAK.

A player’s Wins Above Replacement (WAR) per season (calculated for 162 games).

Advanced statistical method devised by Bill James. A Win Share represents one-third of a team win, by definition, and takes into account defense, offense, baserunning, park effects, and level of competition, era, and many other factors.

A player’s best seven seasons according to his Win Shares. A measure of LONG PEAK.

A player’s best five consecutive seasons according to his Win Shares. A measure of a player’s PRIME.

A player’s best three seasons according to his Win Shares. A measure of a player’s SHORT PEAK.

A player’s Win Shares per season (calculated for 162 games).

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