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PhillieFever · 09-23-2011, 10:38 AM

Thursday July 3rd, 1969

Mays Blasts 600th!
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Mays Clouts 600th Career Homer Off Padres' Tommie Sisk

San Diego(AP) Willie Mays, the Say Hey Kid who developed in the elder statesman of slugging became the second man in Major League history to hit 600 home runs, unfortunately though the Giants lost the game 7-2 to the Padres. Only Babe Ruth's 714 tops to homer record of the Wondrous Willie.
Mays says he thrives on pressure, but he felt relieved to have some of it lifted from his back here when he became the first National League player to ever hit 600 home runs. "The pressure had been building up, I was trying too hard to hit home runs," said the 38 year old after the game. "The bad thing is we lost a game we really needed to win."
The milestone smash earned Mays a $12,500 sports car and one share of stock for each foot the homer traveled. The blast off of Padres veteran righty Tommie Sisk was estimated to have traveled 390 feet. A small crowd of 5,178 gave Mays a standing ovation and the entire San Francisco bench was waiting at home plate as Willie rounded the bases on a gimpy knee injured several weeks ago in a home plate collision with Chicago's Randy Hundley. "It was a thrill to see all my teammates waiting at home plate, that's something you don't see very often," Mays said. It was on June 22nd that Mays hit No. 599 off Atlanta knuckleballer Phil Niekro, and the pressure for waiting for No. 600 was like the pressure he felt in 1966 when he was striving for the National League record of 512. "After I hit 599 I knew I'd hit 600," he grinned "but I beginning to wonder when. That's the way it was with No. 512, I waited eight or nine days to get it." It's a homer he remembers well. "It was off Claude Osteen of the Dodgers at Candlestick," he said.
Mays also remembers his first big league homer and so does Bill Rigney, a former teammate and big league manager who is now a Giants announcer. "He hit his first one off Warren Spahn in 1951," Rigney said, "and it went over the roof at The Polo Grounds."
Mays, slowed by age and injuries, doesn't even consider the possibility of catching the all-time home run leader, Babe Ruth who hit 714 round trippers. Ruth was the only other big leaguer ever to hit as many as 600. "I don't know how much longer I can go," says Mays, "but I know I'll hit some more home runs if I can stay healthy, that's been my trouble. When I'm out of the lineup for a couple of weeks I have trouble getting my timing back." Mays has 19 hits in his last 54 at bats(.352) and has driven in 11 runs during the stretch. He says he thrives on the kind of excitement the Reds, Astros, Giants, Braves and Dodgers are generating in their five way battle for Western Division supremacy.

Willis Mays' Career Stats

09-23-2011, 10:38 AM	#48
PhillieFever Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Elk Twp. NJ Posts: 6,763	Thursday July 3rd, 1969 Mays Blasts 600th! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mays Clouts 600th Career Homer Off Padres' Tommie Sisk San Diego(AP) Willie Mays, the Say Hey Kid who developed in the elder statesman of slugging became the second man in Major League history to hit 600 home runs, unfortunately though the Giants lost the game 7-2 to the Padres. Only Babe Ruth's 714 tops to homer record of the Wondrous Willie. Mays says he thrives on pressure, but he felt relieved to have some of it lifted from his back here when he became the first National League player to ever hit 600 home runs. "The pressure had been building up, I was trying too hard to hit home runs," said the 38 year old after the game. "The bad thing is we lost a game we really needed to win." The milestone smash earned Mays a $12,500 sports car and one share of stock for each foot the homer traveled. The blast off of Padres veteran righty Tommie Sisk was estimated to have traveled 390 feet. A small crowd of 5,178 gave Mays a standing ovation and the entire San Francisco bench was waiting at home plate as Willie rounded the bases on a gimpy knee injured several weeks ago in a home plate collision with Chicago's Randy Hundley. "It was a thrill to see all my teammates waiting at home plate, that's something you don't see very often," Mays said. It was on June 22nd that Mays hit No. 599 off Atlanta knuckleballer Phil Niekro, and the pressure for waiting for No. 600 was like the pressure he felt in 1966 when he was striving for the National League record of 512. "After I hit 599 I knew I'd hit 600," he grinned "but I beginning to wonder when. That's the way it was with No. 512, I waited eight or nine days to get it." It's a homer he remembers well. "It was off Claude Osteen of the Dodgers at Candlestick," he said. Mays also remembers his first big league homer and so does Bill Rigney, a former teammate and big league manager who is now a Giants announcer. "He hit his first one off Warren Spahn in 1951," Rigney said, "and it went over the roof at The Polo Grounds." Mays, slowed by age and injuries, doesn't even consider the possibility of catching the all-time home run leader, Babe Ruth who hit 714 round trippers. Ruth was the only other big leaguer ever to hit as many as 600. "I don't know how much longer I can go," says Mays, "but I know I'll hit some more home runs if I can stay healthy, that's been my trouble. When I'm out of the lineup for a couple of weeks I have trouble getting my timing back." Mays has 19 hits in his last 54 at bats(.352) and has driven in 11 runs during the stretch. He says he thrives on the kind of excitement the Reds, Astros, Giants, Braves and Dodgers are generating in their five way battle for Western Division supremacy. Willis Mays' Career Stats Last edited by PhillieFever; 09-30-2011 at 09:23 AM.