What if we told you that a baseball legend could leave an indelible mark on your heart without you ever having met them? This episode of the Pain-Free Athlete Podcast takes you on a personal journey through the highs and lows of baseball fandom, as I reflect on the impactful life and recent passing of Willie Mays. From my childhood admiration of greats like Thurman Munson to an unforgettable visit to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, you’ll hear how the sport has shaped my life and athletic ethos. Moving to California deepened my connection to the Giants and Willie Mays, especially through his relationship with Barry Bonds—a journey filled with admiration and valuable lessons. Join me and feel the emotional tug as we remember the legends who have imprinted on our hearts, making us not just better athletes, but better human beings.
The Pain-Free Podcast is presented solely for general information, education, and entertainment purposes. Any information presented in this podcast is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional diagnosis. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast or website is at the user’s own risk. As always, users should not disregard or delay obtaining medical advice for any medical or mental health condition that they may have and should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any such conditions.
What if we told you that a baseball legend could leave an indelible mark on your heart without you ever having met them? This episode of the Pain-Free Athlete Podcast takes you on a personal journey through the highs and lows of baseball fandom, as I reflect on the impactful life and recent passing of Willie Mays. From my childhood admiration of greats like Thurman Munson to an unforgettable visit to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, you’ll hear how the sport has shaped my life and athletic ethos. Moving to California deepened my connection to the Giants and Willie Mays, especially through his relationship with Barry Bonds—a journey filled with admiration and valuable lessons. Join me and feel the emotional tug as we remember the legends who have imprinted on our hearts, making us not just better athletes, but better human beings.
The Pain-Free Podcast is presented solely for general information, education, and entertainment purposes. Any information presented in this podcast is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional diagnosis. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast or website is at the user’s own risk. As always, users should not disregard or delay obtaining medical advice for any medical or mental health condition that they may have and should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any such conditions.
Welcome to the Pain-Free Athlete Podcast. I'm your host, dana Jones. I am a certified personal trainer and I'm here to help you achieve your fitness goals without pain. In each episode, I'll share tips and strategies that will help you stay safe and pain-free while you're working out. I'll also interview experts in the field of fitness and pain management. So if you're ready to learn how to stay active and pain-free, then subscribe to the Pain-Free Athlete Podcast today. Hi everyone and welcome to the Pain-Free Athlete Podcast. I'm your host, dana Jones. I'm a bit off topic. This week Just got back from camping and while I was camping I received a notification on my phone.
Speaker 1:
Service was a little spotty and I received a notification about the passing of baseball legend Willie Mays and it was interesting because it really caught me off guard. I mean, the man was 93 years old, so, you know, things like that could be possibly expected, but it was just something that really kind of hit me hard because of the fact that I don't know. You know, baseball means a lot to me and just hearing about somebody who's so prominent in San Francisco, baseball just kind of touched me. And thank goodness I couldn't get videos out there, because I probably would have spent the whole camping trip crying because it was just kind of brutal. I was listening to Dave Fleming, who's one of the baseball announcers on the radio broadcast, trying to find the words to let people know that Willie had passed, and listening to him choke up and I just burst into tears and I think the the interesting ability, or say my new skill, is the fact that I can just let my tears go. Skill is the fact that I can just let my tears go and that's something that's definitely different for me because it wasn't something I was capable of doing, because I was incredibly embarrassed and you know, that whole stuffing feelings thing seemed like an appropriate thing for me to do at the time and now I know that it's just a bunch of bunk and I should be letting those feelings go when I have them.
Speaker 1:
But I wanted to take some time and talk a little bit about Willie and talk about, like, my love for baseball and how you know athletes like him helped shaped who I am as an athlete and the work ethic and you know also the mentality that kind of goes behind being an athlete of color and you know, ever since I was a little girl I grew up in New Jersey, as some of you already know, and I have loved baseball. There was something about the sport, like football. You know, I really enjoy watching football, but there's something about baseball that is just so. I don't know if it's romantic or tantalizing, there's just something about it that just draws me in and I've always, like, admired the greats. And when I was growing up, you know, little girl, I was in the 70s, so there was a lot of greats for me to watch. You know, I think I don't want to say Willie Mays played for the Mets during that time. Maybe that was a little early 70s or something like that was when he left the Giants and then came to the Mets. But you know, I had Thurman Munson, you know, who was the catcher for the Yankees, and that was probably my first baseball loss in terms of somebody who I admired. And he ended up passing away in a crash, an aircraft crash, and I didn't know what to do with that. I was a little girl and here's this man who I wanted to be like. I wanted to be a baseball catcher. That was my little dream and you know, all I got was, you know, 70s news, right Like Thurman met and Monson passed away, at whatever age he was, and you know that kind of thing and you know you didn't have 24 hour news, you didn't have everybody knowing all the information, and so I had to process those feelings and, as you can imagine, since processing feelings is a new skill, I did not have it at the early age when this all occurred, and it's just you know. So it's kind of interesting the integral part that baseball has played in my life.
Speaker 1:
Last summer I had the ability to go visit the Negro League's Baseball Museum in Kansas City because it was part of my job. It was part of my job and I had the opportunity because we actually did like a little field trip there to play wiffle ball within the baseball museum. And it was really cool because they have a field set up and then they have all the famous Negro leagues players in different positions and so we're trying to play wiffle ball and we're running in and out of, like Buck O'Neill and Josh Gibson and all this other stuff, and it was really kind of cool. And I realized like how much I don't know about the Negro Leagues and you know just things that I picked up from movies or watching. You know the documentary baseball and just having the ability to kind of squat and take a picture, nest next to Josh Gibson and you know finding out, you know, cuz again, I really didn't know like that he was referred to as the Black Babe Ruth, you know, and just how incredibly strong he was and how fast he was, even though he was a catcher right, because somehow along the line catchers got this rap as being slow and lazy and that was not the case for him.
Speaker 1:
So in 1994 I moved to california and I became immersed in giants baseball and at that time I can't remember, it was probably a little bit after that, barry bonds got traded from pittsburgh to san francisco and he was playing on the team and I was never a huge barry bonds fan because of the fact that he played for pittsburgh and pittsburgh was not my team and he just was cocky and you know there's just something about him that kind of doesn't work for me. But one of the enduring factors about him is that his godfather is willie mays, and so through all this process I get to learn more about willie, who I didn't really know about. Like I knew he's famous, you know, kind of like nolan ryan, like you know, when everybody kind of runs through the mets for for their last hurrah or whatever. You get to really know who they are and you're like, oh okay, that was cool, but I really didn't know who he was and so I got the opportunity to learn about him. As you know, barry Bonds was coming across all these different records that he was breaking and Willie had a very wicked sense of humor, which I loved.
Speaker 1:
Everybody on the Giants team you know, including the radio personalities and all the you know support staff, and everybody loved him because he was such a good guy. He always made you feel like you were important. You know, regardless of where you were on the team or where you were in the organization, of where you were on the team or where you were in the organization and you know that's a real special skill and that's you know, something that just hopefully people will continue on. But it seems like sometimes it's kind of hit or miss, especially with athletes now. But for me the funny part was listening to Willie talk about Barry as a little boy and how he would always take gum from his locker. Barry's dad used to play with Willie and that's how Willie became his godfather and Was a good mentor for him because I think he helped manage a lot of Barry's behaviors when he was getting a little too big for his britches and it was a good thing. But you got to hear a lot of the you know before the Giants games. You'd hear a lot of stories about Barry as to hear a lot of the you know before the Giants games. You'd hear a lot of stories about Barry as a little boy and you got to hear about Willie and the things that he would do and how he really influenced everybody around him and he was just such a good clubhouse guy and just incredible. You know.
Speaker 1:
And when you look at baseball, there is a kind of a I don't know like a level that you hit when you become pretty freaking awesome and Willie Mays was not. They call it a five tool player. That's when you're really awesome, right. So that means that you can hit for average, you're hitting for power, so you're hitting home runs, you're running with speed, you have excellent fielding percentage and you have amazing throwing arm strength. And then a six tool player is somebody who's got great instincts, has leadership qualities and basically can perform under pressure. And you know, people know who you are because you just set yourself apart from everybody else, and that was Willie Mays was that. He was somebody who was a six tool player and you know we talk about how Jackie Robinson had such an influence on the game because he broke the color barrier and he was very skillful in his playing, you know. But Willie just really was an amazing athlete and of course, you know he's famous for the catch right, which was the over the shoulder catch that he made during the world series, and but he was just just amazing to watch and, um, you know, he's somebody who really, you know, touches my heart because of the fact that he was just very human for somebody who was just so amazing. I went through and I was like let's, let's look at. You know where he was in terms of everything that he had done Right. So he obviously he's a hall of famer.
Speaker 1:
He was a I think they had him as a consultant or, you know, special assistant or something like that in the Giants organization because of his knowledge and skill of players and I think he also pretty much can sniff out good players and know who is worth it. He is a career 302 hitter. I know baseball is kind of funny, but think about it. If you get one hit out of three at bats, which you know normal time would be failure in baseball, you're pretty damn good. And so for him to have a batting average over 300 is pretty amazing. He had 660 home runs and he had two years where he had 50 home run seasons, which is insane.
Speaker 1:
He's on the list as having three thousand two hundred and eighty three hits, 24 time all-star. He has 12 gold gloves. He's the only player with three thousand hits, 300 average, 300 home runs and 300 stolen bases hits 300 average, 300 home runs and 300 stolen bases, you know. And he is the only player with a home run in every inning, one through 16, which is kind of crazy because they only play nine innings. So that means that he had a home run on all those extra inning games and it was just it's. You know, it's pretty cool. It's pretty cool that he has such a good life and he was willing to share his experience with everybody.
Speaker 1:
And you know, for me, you know what does this mean.
Speaker 1:
Well, you know, as I go through and I watch the videos on TikTok and Instagram and I see the tributes to him, and I tear up and I, I cry and I have all the feelings and I think it's kind of fun in a weird way that I'm able to have feelings for somebody who I've never met and it's just, you know, I'm sad to see him go because I will definitely miss him in the Giants organization and listening to him hop into the booth sometimes and do interviews, because his stories were awesome. And I also know that life is life and sometimes people pass away and I would say that he lived a full life and he touched a lot of people. I would say that he lived a full life and he touched a lot of people and I think it is good for us as humans to mourn the loss of good people and I am definitely feeling that for Willie. So that's all I have for today. Thank you so much for listening and I will catch you next time.