Description: This Lot includes a Type 1 original photograph of Willie Mays and Don Newcombe. The Photo was taken on Opening Day of 1954, the return of the two baseball legends after their stints in the Army. This incredibly rare and historic piece of baseball history generates a powerful message and purpose. The Photo: The photo depicts a smiling Willie Mays, the “Say Hey Kid”, and truly captures his personality and love for the game of baseball. Beside Willie is the six-foot four-inch Don Newcombe. Don is one of the all-time best pitchers to not be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Don was a dominant pitcher in his prime, winning MVP and Cy Young awards in 1956 with a league leading 27 wins. The Setting: This photo was taken on April 13, 1954 at the Polo Grounds in New York. The Opening Day matchup between the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers hosted supreme talent. Between the eighteen starting players, 7 of them would later be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame (Willie Mays, Monte Irvin, PeeWee Reese, Gil Hodges, Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, Roy Campanella). Hoyt Wilhelm, also a Hall of Famer, was on the Giants but did not see action in this game. Other baseball greats include Jim Gilliam, Carl Erskine, Al Dark, and managerial greats Leo Durocher and Walter Alston. The Game: The game went back and forth with several lead changes and a final score of 4-3, and ultimately the Giants would defeat the Dodgers. Despite his teams’ losing effort, reigning MVP Roy Campanella would have an incredible game hitting two home runs. In the sixth inning, Willie Mays would hit the game winning Home Run, the 25th of his young career. The Season: 1954 proved to be one of Willie Mays’ best. He would lead his team to become World Champions, and win regular season Most Valuable Player along the way. In Game one of this World Series Willie would make one of the most famous catches in the history of the sport. The play known as “The Catch'', a pure athletic feat, sprinting full speed with his back to the infield, making the catch, and saving a run with an incredible throw back to the infield. Willie would lead the league in Batting Average in 1954, the only year he ever did so. He would compile 195 Hits, 110 RBI’s, 119 Runs, 41 Home Runs, and hold a batting average of .345. The Photographer: The photographer, William Jacobellis, that took this photo is responsible for some very iconic sports photographs. There are hundreds of Topps and Bowman cards from the 1950s-60s that display photographs taken by Jacobellis. Some of his most famous photographs include the photos used for Sandy Koufax’s 1956 Topps, Willie Mays’ 1954 Bowman, Hank Aaron’s 1955 Topps, and many other iconic photos of the games greatest players.
Price: 2400 USD
Location: Okawville, Illinois
End Time: 2024-02-21T01:53:05.000Z
Shipping Cost: N/A USD
Product Images
Item Specifics
All returns accepted: ReturnsNotAccepted
Player: Willie Mays
Sport: Baseball
Year: 1954
Original/Reproduction: Original
Team-Baseball: New York Giants
Vintage: Yes
