Willie Mays tells Birmingham Black Barons + Rickwood Field stories before his 93rd birthday

When Willie Mays, the greatest living baseball player speaks, people listen. Especially days before his 93rd birthday, today, May 6th.

This past weekend, the San Francisco Chronicle published an exclusive interview with the legendary Mays, who will be returning to Birmingham for the upcoming MLB at Rickwood Field Tribute to the Negro Leagues game on June 20th.

Learned from the Birmingham Black Barons

In a reflective interview, Mays, who was only 17 years old when he started playing for the Birmingham Black Barrons, credits his Negro League teammates for teaching him about life and the game.

“Those guys were really good guys. All of them. They’re the ones who taught me about the game and life. Taught me everything. So when I came to the Giants, I already knew how to do all kinds of stuff.”

Willie Mays, interview with the San Francisco Chronicle

Mays, who played all but a season and a half with the NY/SF Giants, will get to see his Giants take on the St. Louis Cardinals at the Rickwood Tribute game. 

“I don’t like to talk about myself. I’d rather talk about all the guys. I’ve always been like that. Piper Davis was the guy over everything. Our manager and second baseman. Like a second father to me, a big brother. You always listened to Piper. He made it comfortable for me so I didn’t have to worry about anything.

“We had a lot of fun. They took care of me, man. They all took care of me.”

Willie Mays, interview with the San Francisco Chronicle

Rickwood Field will be the center of the baseball world

Rickwood Field is going to be the center of baseball beginning June 18th, when our hometown Birmingham Barons and Montgomery Biscuits honor the legacy of the Negro Leagues by playing as the Birmingham Black Barons and Montgomery Gray Sox, respectively.

Major League Baseball and the City of Birmingham will be making 26% of the approximate 8,300 seated tickets at Rickwood Field available to community- or youth-based organizations in Birmingham at no cost.

MLB held a lottery for tickets to the game, open only to Alabama residents. People were notified Monday if they were selected and tickets went on sale shortly after, selling out in minutes. Congratulations if you were one of the lucky ones to get a ticket but if you didn’t, apologize to your wallets before checking out the resale prices on StubHub.

In the meantime, Happy 93rd Birthday Willie Mays! Thank you for sharing with us your stories with some of the greats in the Negro League. We look forward to seeing you in person this June.