'Hard to fully grasp his greatness': Angels share fond Mays memories

This story was excerpted from Rhett Bollinger’s Angels Beat newsletter, written this week by Brent Maguire. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

The baseball world was rocked by the news of the passing of baseball legend Willie Mays on Tuesday. The Hall of Famer, 24-time All-Star and cultural icon in the Black community passed away at the age of 93.

For many members of the Angels' roster and coaching staff, the news hit especially close to home. Angels manager Ron Washington -- who is one of two Black managers along with the Dodgers’ Dave Roberts -- reflected on Mays’ passing and the significance that Mays had to him and the baseball community.

“We’re losing all of our legends. It goes to show you how long this game has been going on. We know he’s a superstar,” Washington said. “In the San Francisco area, he was always visible, always available for anybody. We’re going to sorely miss him.”

While Washington’s personal connection to Mays was limited to just one interaction, it stuck with him all these years later.

“I met Willie one time when I went there to play in San Francisco. I was sitting in the dugout and went over to introduce myself,” Washington said. “One thing I remembered about it is that he knew who I was. At the time, I was nobody.”

Similar to Mays (born in Westfield, Ala., in 1931), Washington was born in the South (New Orleans) in 1952 -- a year after Mays debuted with the New York Giants. Washington spoke about how much he idolized Mays and reminisced about the fact that the Washington household got Giants games after the team moved to the West Coast in 1958.

Washington remembered watching Giants games on a black and white TV on his dad’s lap, seeing the likes of Mays, Willie McCovey and Juan Marichal -- three titans for the Giants and in baseball lore.

Other Angels coaches shared similar stories of the impact Mays had on them. Jo Adell is one of two Black Americans on the Angels along with Willie Calhoun, and spoke to the importance Mays had not just on the game of baseball but also on Adell as a Black baseball player.

“He’s obviously a legend. It just kind of came out of nowhere. Just how much he’s done for the game, for San Francisco as a city and in the Black community,” Adell said. “For me, it was pretty awesome [seeing Mays’ impact]. We all salute that. Rest his soul.”

Kevin Pillar is one of the few Angels who can say he was in the presence of Mays for a whole baseball season. Traded to the Giants on April 2, 2019, Pillar hit 21 home runs and played in 156 games in San Francisco that season.

“Being a Giant, you’re part of that fraternity of being a Giant. Players like Mays, Barry Bonds,” Pillar said. “The Giants organization was really good at reminding you of their history and making you feel a part of that history. When it comes to players like that, it’s hard to fully grasp his greatness.”

Like Washington, Pillar only met Mays once that season, but he remembers that experience quite well. Early on, Pillar took the opportunity to introduce himself to the baseball legend. The conversation was quick, but before Pillar left, Mays asked if he had his glove with him.

Pillar ran to his locker to get his glove and brought it back for Mays, who put the mitt on and was trying to “relive his playing days” before commenting that it was a nice glove.

“If it’s good enough for him, then it’s good enough for me,” Pillar said.

Angels star Mike Trout -- who is currently sidelined with an injury but has long been compared to Mays -- also chimed in about Mays’ importance to him in a social media post.

The timing of Mays’ death came during an important week for Black Americans. Wednesday was Juneteenth (June 19), a federal day to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. From June 18-20, MLB hosted a series of events and games at Rickwood Field, the oldest professional ballpark in the United States and former home of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues -- culminating with the Giants and Cardinals playing on Thursday night.

Mays started his professional career with the Black Barons in 1948 before beginning his legendary MLB career as a member of the New York Giants in 1951.