Even a year after his passing, Willie Mays continues to make a difference in people’s lives.
Mays’ personal collection, featuring some of the biggest honors from his legendary baseball career, will go up for auction on Sept. 27 in San Francisco at the King Street Warehouse event space adjacent to Oracle Park. Per Mays’ wishes, all proceeds from the auction will go to the Say Hey! Foundation, which Mays founded in 2000 and offers education, training, health services and more to underprivileged children.
Some of the more prominent items in the auction include Mays’ 1954 World Series ring with the New York Giants, his two National League MVP trophies from ’54 and ’65, his National Baseball Hall of Fame induction ring from ’79 and his Presidential Medal of Freedom from 2015.
“For all of his extraordinary achievements as a baseball player, Willie Mays wanted his enduring legacy to be helping children,” said Jeff Bleich, Mays’ friend and chair of the Say Hey! Foundation. “Willie believed that every child deserves the chance to make the most of their talents.
Bleich added that Mays had one piece of instruction to Dave Hunt at Hunt Auctions, which is presenting the event: “Make this the best auction ever to help those kids.”
Arguably the best player in baseball history, Mays was a 24-time All-Star and just one of just four MLB players to record least 600 home runs and 3,000 hits. He passed away on June 18, 2024, at the age of 93.
An online only offering for hundreds of additional Willie Mays Collection items will follow on Sept. 28. Several special event previews will take place in the Bay Area in advance of the live auction with details to follow. The first public display of the collection will occur at the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago between July 30 and Aug. 3.
