Willie Mays, one of the greatest baseball players of all time, dies aged 93

Published

5 months ago

June 19, 2024

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Willie Mays, considered one of the best players in the history of baseball and called the ‘Say Hey Kid’, has died at the age of 93.

His son Michael Mays confirmed the legendary centre fielder had passed away on Tuesday evening in a statement through the San Francisco Giants.

“My father has passed away peacefully and among loved ones,” he said.

“I want to thank you all from the bottom of my broken heart for the unwavering love you have shown him over the years. You have been his life’s blood.”

Chairman of the Giants Greg Johnson also said: “He had a profound influence not only on the game of baseball, but on the fabric of America.

“He was an inspiration and a hero who will be forever remembered and deeply missed.”

Major League Baseball (MLB) also paid tribute and said they were “heartbroken” after losing “one of the most exciting all-around players in the history of our sport”.

Born in 1931 and making his professional debut in 1948, Mays was a 24-time All-Star who spent parts of 21 seasons with the Giants, both when they were in New York and San Francisco.

Throughout his career, he had a batting average of .301, hit 660 home runs, totalled 3,293 hits, scored 2,068 runs and won 12 Gold Gloves.

Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility in 1979, with nearly 95% of all ballots cast for him.

‘The Catch’

His most famous moment came during game one of the 1954 World Series, when the Cleveland Indians’ Vic Wertz hit a ball to the deep centre, while a pair of runners were on base in a tie-breaker game.

With his back turned away from the infield, Mays sprinted toward the centre field wall at the Polo Grounds and made an over-the-shoulder basket catch.

The moment – known simply as “The Catch” – proved decisive and helped the Giants win 5-2 across ten innings. The team eventually won the world series, the only time Mays did so.

In 2010, Mays told biographer James S Hirsch: “Soon as it got hit, I knew I’d catch the ball.

“All the time I’m running back, I’m thinking, ‘Willie, you’ve got to get this ball back to the infield’.”

In 2017, the World Series Most Valuable Player award was named after Mays, despite him only winning the post-season tournament once.

History in Negro leagues

Prior to his time in the majors, Mays spent a year with the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League.

The league was segregated from other baseball organisations as African Americans were excluded by the colour line – a policy where black baseball players were banned from the MLB and its affiliated Minor Leagues.

It was an unofficial but pervasive policy until 1945 when Jackie Robinson signed for the Brooklyn Dodgers, but it took until the 1960’s for African American players to be fully integrated across the sport.

Earlier this month, the MLB finally recognised the segregated leagues in their statistics. A game in Mays’ and the leagues’ honour is set to be held on Thursday.

Mays had told the San Francisco Chronicle he would not be able to get to Birmingham for the game, but said: “My heart will be with all of you who are honouring the Negro League ballplayers, who should always be remembered, including all my teammates on the Black Barons.”

Speaking from the stadium, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said: “All of Major League Baseball is in mourning today as we are gathered at the very ballpark where a career and a legacy like no other began.

“Willie Mays took his all-around brilliance from the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League to the historic Giants franchise.

“From coast to coast… Willie inspired generations of players and fans as the game grew and truly earned its place as our National Pastime.

“We will never forget this true Giant on and off the field.”

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YouTuber Jake Paul beats Mike Tyson as boos heard during controversial fight

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5 hours ago

November 16, 2024

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YouTuber Jake Paul beats Mike Tyson as boos heard during controversial fight

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has defeated one of the greatest-ever fighters, former heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, who is more than twice his age.

Paul, 27, won the bout via a unanimous points decision at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas – home of the Dallas Cowboys and the biggest NFL stadium in the US.

The fight was already controversial but then arguably failed to live up to the hype. Boos were heard from the crowd in the final two rounds, after a perceived lack of action.

Afterwards, the pair heaped praise on each other. Paul said: “This man is an icon and it’s just an honour to be able to fight him. And he’s obviously the toughest, baddest man on the planet.”

Tyson, 58, described Paul as a “good fighter” but dismissed the suggestion he was out to prove something.

“I didn’t prove nothing to anybody, only to myself,” he said.

Boxing careers compared

This was not Paul’s first professional fight. The American YouTube star made his debut in 2020, and his most high-profile clash was last year against Tyson Fury’s brother Tommy Fury, which he lost by a split decision.

The so-called “Problem Child” has since defeated former UFC contender Nate Diaz, professional boxer Andre August, former Gold Gloves champion Ryan Bourland and most recently MMA fighter Mike Perry.

In contrast, “Iron Mike” Tyson was ranked among the best heavyweight boxers of all time.

During his career, he knocked out 44 opponents – retiring from professional boxing in 2005 after defeat against Kevin McBride.

He returned to the ring in 2020 for a bout against fellow boxing icon Roy Jones, which ended in an unofficial draw.

‘Someone’s getting put to sleep’

Earlier this week, Paul said he believed the bout would not go the distance. “No, someone’s getting put to sleep,” he said. “It’s going to be a war, and we’re both heavy hitters. It’s not going the full 16 minutes.”

Tyson said: “I’ve been through so many ups and downs since my last fight with Kevin McBride.

“I’ve been in rehab. I’ve been in prison, been locked up. Never in a million years did I believe I’d be doing this.”

Several states would not allow the bout to go ahead, and the Texas Athletic Commission only agreed to the fight if there were changes, due to Tyson’s age.

It limited the contest to eight rounds lasting a maximum of two minutes instead of three. Both boxers were also required to wear heavier gloves, designed to lessen the force of punches.

The fight was initially scheduled for 20 July, but was postponed when Tyson suffered an ulcer flareup.

Taylor defends title

Meanwhile, among the undercard fights, Irish boxer Katie Taylor successfully defended her super lightweight world title against Puerto Rico’s Amanda Serrano.

But it was tight. Taylor claimed the rematch 95-94 for all three judges in an epic battle.

The bout came two and a half years after the pair fought at Madison Square Garden, which Taylor won on a split decision.

Bout suffered from buffering

Earlier in the evening thousands of Netflix users in the US reported problems with the coverage, with some posting on social media about buffering.

At one point, more than 98,000 people had reported issues according to Downdetector, which tracks outages.

US

Matt Gaetz: Speaker Mike Johnson will request report into Trump’s attorney general pick is kept secret

Published

5 hours ago

November 16, 2024

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Matt Gaetz: Speaker Mike Johnson will request report into Trump's attorney general pick is kept secret

US House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he will “strongly request” a report into allegations of sex trafficking against Matt Gaetz, who is the president-elect’s choice of attorney general, should not be released.

Mr Johnson said he was against publishing the House Ethics Committee report on Mr Gaetz, 42, who if approved by the Senate will become the nation’s top prosecutor once Donald Trump is sworn in as president on 20 January.

That’s despite Mr Gaetz having previously faced a nearly three-year Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl. He denies the allegations and has not faced criminal charges.

Mr Gaetz has also never worked as a prosecutor and has only worked in law for a few years at a local level.

He stepped down from Congress after Mr Trump announced him as his attorney general pick.

His resignation brought the investigation by the House Ethics Committee to an end – two days before it had been expected to release its report into the trafficking claims.

House Speaker Mr Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said of the probe: “I’m going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee not issue the report, because that is not the way we do things in the House.”

Politicians of both parties on the Senate Judiciary Committee have said they want to see the report on Mr Gaetz, as part of a Senate confirmation process for cabinet nominees that would start next year with public hearings.

Democrats have described the MAGA loyalist as “a gonzo agent of chaos” and his appointment a “red alert moment for our democracy”, while some Republican senators have also raised doubts about his suitability for the role.

Mr Johnson said he planned to urge House Ethics Committee chairman Michael Guest not to provide the report to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“The rules of the House have always been that a former member is beyond the jurisdiction of the Ethics Committee,” said Mr Johnson, who returned on Friday morning from meeting Mr Trump at the president-elect’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

“I think it’s a terrible breach of protocol and tradition and the spirit of the rule,” he added. “I think that would be a terrible precedent to set.”

Mr Johnson had said on Wednesday that as Speaker he could not be involved in deciding whether or not to release the report.

US

Malcolm X family brings $100m lawsuit against FBI, CIA and NYPD over ‘conspiracy to assassinate’ civil rights leader

Published

5 hours ago

November 16, 2024

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Malcolm X family brings 0m lawsuit against FBI, CIA and NYPD over 'conspiracy to assassinate' civil rights leader

A $100m (£79m) lawsuit has been brought against the CIA, FBI and New York Police Department (NYPD) who are accused of being involved in the 1965 assassination of civil rights leader Malcolm X.

The case, which has been filed in a federal court in Manhattan, New York, alleges that the agencies were aware of the assassination, they were involved in the plot and failed to stop the killing.

The legal action has been brought by Malcolm X’s three daughters along with his estate.

The NYPD and CIA have not yet responded to the claims while the FBI said it was “standard practice” not to comment on litigation.

Nicholas Biase, a spokesperson for the US Department of Justice, which is also included in the lawsuit, declined to respond.

Malcolm X was 39 when he was shot dead on 21 February 1965 on stage by three gunmen as he prepared to speak at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan.

At a news conference in New York on Friday, to announce the details of the lawsuit, attorney Benjamin Crump said: “The government fingerprints are all over the assassination of Malcolm X.

“We believe we have the evidence to prove it.”

For decades, questions have arisen over who was behind his murder.

Malcolm X rose to prominence as the national spokesman of the Nation of Islam, an African-American Muslim group which supported black separatism.

He broke away from the group in 1964 and moderated some of his earlier views on racial separation, which angered Nation of Islam members and resulted in death threats.

Three men were convicted of his murder but two of them were cleared in 2021 after investigators took a fresh look at the case. They concluded some evidence was shaky and authorities had held back some information.

In the lawsuit, which began its process in 2023, it is alleged the NYPD coordinated with federal law enforcement agencies to arrest the activist’s security guards days before the assassination.

It also claims police were intentionally removed from inside the ballroom where Malcolm X was killed and that federal agencies had personnel, including undercover agents, at the site but failed to protect him.

The lawsuit goes on to allege a “corrupt, unlawful, and unconstitutional” relationship between law enforcement and “ruthless killers… which was actively concealed, condoned, protected, and facilitated by government agents”.

Referring to Malcolm X’s family, the lawsuit states: “They did not know who murdered Malcolm X, why he was murdered, the level of NYPD, FBI and CIA orchestration, the identity of the governmental agents who conspired to ensure his demise, or who fraudulently covered up their role.”