The “enormously entertaining and wide-ranging” (Seattle Times) authorized, definitive, New York Times bestselling biography of Willie Mays, the most complete baseball player ever.

Willie Mays is arguably the best player in football history, still revered for the interest he taken to the game. He started as an adolescent in the Negro Leagues, became a cult hero in New York, and was the headliner in Main League Baseball’s vivid extension to California. He was a mixture of power, swiftness, and about Willie Mays: The Life, The Story stylistic bravado that enraptured fans for more than two decades. Now James Hirsch reveals the man behind the player.

Mays was a transcendent figure who received standing up ovations in enemy stadiums and who, during the turbulent civil privileges period, urged understanding and reconciliation. More than his records, his legacy is defined by the genuine joy that he brought to fans and the adoring memories which have been exceeded to future years so they might understand the magic and beauty of the overall game. With meticulous study and sketching on interviews with Mays himself as well as with close friends, family members, and teammates, Hirsch presents a brilliant portrait of one of America’s most crucial cultural icons.