Watch a recently unearthed 1992 interview with the late great Willie Mays
Former KPIX sports producer/reporter Steve Kroner interviewed SF Giants great Willie Mays at his Atherton home in the days before the 1992 All-Star Game in San Diego.
Mays was the National League's honorary captain for the game. The 30-minute raw interview recently came to light. The conversation covers several topics, including "The Catch" in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, the time Mays spent playing as a Birmingham Black Baron as a teenager, what he learned from his time in the Negro Leagues and how he earned the "Say Hey" nickname. The full interview broken up into three parts can be watched on this page.
At one point, Mays tears up when he talks about baseball, and asks our cameras to turn off. Mays died last month on June 18 at age 93, just two days before the Giants were set to play special tribute game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, in commemoration of Mays and the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues.
A public tribute to Mays is scheduled to be held at Oracle Park on Monday, July 8, at 4 p.m. Gates to the ballpark open at 3 p.m. The event is free and no registration is required.