This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 12/10/2004.
Willie Mays is one of the most talented and well-known baseball players to ever grace a Major League field. He began his career in 1951 at the Polo Grounds with the New York Giants. Perhaps an indicator of the magical career to come, Mays' first Major League hit was a monstrous home run that came after twelve hitless at bats. His homerun total for that first season was a more than respectable 19 home runs, and Mays took home the National League Rookie of the Year award that year. From there Mays only got better, becoming one of the game's greatest all-time hitters and recording two 50-plus home seasons in the 50s and 60s. During his illustrious 22 year career, Mays achieved a career .302 batting average and racked up an amazing 3,283 hits and 660 homeruns, numbers that still easily put him in the upper echelon of baseball hitters. But it was his defensive prowess that truly made Mays one of the greats. Joe DiMaggio once said that Willie Mays had the greatest throwing arm in baseball, a statement that is substantiated by the fact that Mays holds the all-time record for most putouts by an outfielder with 7,095 of them. Mays however, is probably most remembered for his acrobatic and entertaining catches in the outfield. Two of the more memorable ones include a remarkable bare handed running grab against Pittsburgh during his rookie season and his unforgettable over the back catch in game one of the 1954 World Series against the Cleveland Indians, a catch that seemingly propelled his Giants to a four game World Series sweep. Mays was so good in the field that one sportswriter once quipped that Mays should play in handcuffs to even things up. A 12-time Gold Glove winner, two-time NL MVP, 24-time All-Star, World Series champion and one of Major League baseball's best hitters, Willie Mays is undoubtedly one of baseball's greats. On the front left tail of this jersey is "Mays 61 43" embroidered in black indicating the player name, year, and jersey size. Across the front of the jersey is "SAN FRANSISCO" done in black on orange tackle twill. Inside the neck of the jersey is the "Rawlings" manufacturer's tag with a jersey size of "44" on it. The jersey shows good game-use and appears to have no alterations of any kind.