![Willie Mays dead at 93](https://www.usatoday.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/06/19/USAT/74146138007-usatsi-2155529.jpg?crop=1199,675,x0,y120&width=660&height=372&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
Mays, almost inarguably the greatest living Hall of Famer, was to be honored Thursday evening when Major League Baseball stages a Giants-St. Louis Cardinals game at Birmingham's Rickwood Field, Mays' hometown and site of his Negro League career before making his major league debut in 1948, one year after Jackie Robinson broke the league's color barrier. But Monday, he indicated he would not be able to make it and would enjoy the game from home.
Mays got 95% of the vote when he was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1979, after a career with 660 home runs (third all-time when he retired), 3,283 hits, two National League MVP awards and a record-tying 24 All-Star Game appearances (two games played each year from 1959-62). Mays' All-Star Game records include most at-bats (75), most hits (23), most runs (20) and most stolen bases (six).