What a delightful article Slim wrote on June 20 entitled “ Willie Mays, Willie May and the importance of preserving the history of local sports.”

It was a sad day not only for baseball but for America to learn about the passing of Willie Mays, who was truly an American Icon. His career was much more than the amazing statistics he compiled during his long and illustrious tenure in Major League Baseball.

Baseball was much more than a job to him. He had a deep and abiding love for this game we call baseball. In 1970 he expressed his feelings about the game when he said, “I like to play happy. Baseball is a fun game… and I love it.”

When he retired, no one except Babe Ruth had hit more home runs. Had his career not been interrupted by military service Willie would likely have been the first to eclipse The Babe’s lifetime home run mark.

Mays never forgot that he was the beneficiary of those who had gone before. He once told a panel of Negro League oldtimers, “You were the pioneers. You were the ones who made it possible for us. On another occasion he said “ Everytime I look at my pocketbook, I see Jackie Robinson. “

I hope all of your readers had an opportunity to view all of the proceedings surrounding the game played on June 20 at historic Rickwood Field in Birmingham which honored the memory and legacy of the Negro League players. As former Baseball commissioner Peter Uberroth stated, “They were big leaguers in every sense of the term and it is about time their stories were told and retold.”

On a final note let me thank Slim for encouraging all of your readers to consider nominating someone to be enshrined in the Lowndes County Sports Hall of Fame. We have a rich heritage in Lowndes County and it is important to honor and recognize their accomplishments.

Glenn Lautzenhiser

Columbus