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Great African American Baseball Players
Willie McCovey
On October 16, 1962 at Candlestick Park, McCovey came within inches of being a World Series hero. The Giants trailed the perennially powerful Yankees 1-0 with runners at second and third and two out in the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game. McCovey hit a line drive toward right field that second baseman Bobby Richardson speared to end the Series. The play has been discussed by fans ever since. It even became a running element of Charles Schulz's"Peanuts" comic strip, a moment in life that Charlie Brown could relate to with complete empathy
McCovey had his banner year in 1969 and won the MVP award. In addition to leading the NL with 45 homers, 126 RBI, and a .656 slugging percentage, he drew a record 45 intentional walks and finished fifth with a .320 batting average. His 9.2 home run percentage that year is one of the highest ever. McCovey's appearance in the 1969 All-Star Game was his third of six, and he paced the NL to a 9-3 victory with two home runs. McCovey was an integral part of an ever-changing Giants team that contended for a decade, reaching the World Series in 1962 and the NL playoffs in 1971. Giants owners devastated Bay Area fans by sending McCovey, their favorite player, to the upstart San Diego Padres prior to the 1974 season. Tagged Big Mac in deference to Padres and McDonald's owner Ray Kroc, McCovey had two good seasons and one poor one before the Padres sold him to the Oakland Athletics, the Giants' cross-bay competition. He played in only 11 games for the A's, who released him at the end of the season. McCovey was invited by new Giants ownership to San Francisco's spring training camp in 1977, and he responded with a 28-homer, 86-RBI comeback at the age of 39.
The final hurrah of McCovey's career came in 1980 when he hit his only home run of the season and the 521st and final one of his career, which then tied him with Ted Williamsfor tenth place all-time in home runs. Having played during four decades, he retired during the season and joined the Giants' public- and community-relations staff. McCovey was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986.
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