Baseball World Pays Tribute to the Late Willie Mays

San Francisco Giants legend Willie Mays before the game in the final regular season game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons at Candlestick Park.
San Francisco Giants legend Willie Mays before the game in the final regular season game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons at Candlestick Park. / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
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Willie Mays, one of the greatest and most influential baseball players to ever live, passed away peacefully Tuesday at the age of 93.

The "Say Hey Kid" was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979 after an illustrious career in professional baseball which spanned 23 seasons. He made 24 All-Star Games, the second most in league history and launched 660 home runs, good for sixth on the all-time leaderboard.

He's immortalized outside of Oracle Park, located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza, with an iconic nine-foot statue, a tribute to the impact he had on both the San Francisco Giants' organization and MLB as a whole.

The loss of one of the sports all-time greats left baseball fans with heavy hearts, and they shared tributes to the legendary outfielder on social media to commemorate his exemplary life on and off the field.


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Karl Rasmussen
KARL RASMUSSEN

Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News team for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.