I've always believed that Mays was the best all around player, but then again, I also have a connection to him in that we share the same birthday May, 6th.

In 2001 I had the honor of sharing my 34th birthday with Willie at Bally's Casino in Atlantic, NJ as I was invited to attend his private 70th birthday party where he was roasted celebrated many of his Hall of Fame peers.

Prior to the birthday ceremonies I had the opportunity to spend about two hours with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Willie McCovey and dozens of Willie's other close Hall of Fame contemporaries and friends at a cocktail hour. We talked (well they talked, I asked questions and listened) about baseball, both past and present, and other normal life issues (you forget that these are real people and have other interests too). That was two hours of conversation that I'll never forget.

When I heard that James Hirsh was going to write an authorized biography of the great Willie Mays I was excited to say the least. Willie doesn't let many people into his world, that was one of the reasons spending his 70th birthday with him was so special.

One of the interesting things I found out about this book as the book tour started that is quite unusual is that Willie Mays is entitled to half the profits from the sale of the book. I guess when you are Willie Mays you can command such a fee. It's easy to forget that players even the stature of Willie Mays had to have second jobs in winter months just to make ends meet for the majority of their careers. Never the less, this is the reason you will see and hear him on TV and radio all across the nation promoting the book. Here's his promo spot with John Stewart on The Daily Show which was broadcast on February 10th.

Willie Mays, The Life, The Legend was made available to the public on February 9, 2010. It is the first biography of Mays to go beyond 'The Catch' and the statistics to paint a portrait of the often enigmatic and complex man behind the smile that won the hearts of an entire nation. Willie Mays played baseball with an unrivaled enthusiasm and passion, and a talent no superlative could adequately capture.

What makes this book unique among other biographies of Mays, is that author James Hirsh was given access to dozens of people who knew and know Mays best. Childhood friends, teammates, opponents, and family all contribute unique anecdotes that provide a well-rounded and accurate portrayal. Hirsch describes Mays as honestly and unapologetically as possible and Mays himself makes no apologies to his critics and detractors. He is who he is, and for the first time, readers can get more than a passing glimpse of the pragmatic and deeply thoughtful character, Willie Mays.

Hirsch masterfully edited what could have been a cumbersome amount of data and material down to a succinct narrative of an extraordinary life. His strengths as a writer are evident in that it is not his voice that comes through, but those of his subjects. He brings an added dimension to Mays' story by breathing life the people who helped shape him, like his father 'Cat' Mays, his Aunt Sarah, and his many coaches and colleagues. Hirsch also handles the racial themes that served as an undercurrent to both Mays' life and life in America without glossing over any realities, or being too inflammatory.

Mays' legacy as baseball's first five-tool player is well documented in this book. From the apocryphal tale of his birth - where the doctor exclaimed "My God, look at those hands!" - to the very early training received from his father (himself a semi-professional baseball player) Mays seemed destined to be a phenomenal baseball player. While with the Birmingham Black Barons, his precociousness was humbled a bit by his more athletic teammates and his tough-as-nails coach, Piper Davis. Despite his obvious natural talents, Mays saw himself as an entertainer, and made sure to put on a show for the audience. It was this and his love for the game that propelled him at the young age of 20 to a brief stint in Triple-A, where he was almost immediately catapulted into the Major Leagues with the New York Giants.

His skills and passion helped him to become a public figure upon his arrival in New York, a reality that was often too much for the very private Mays to deal with. As a black baseball player, he was compared to Jackie Robinson, Hank Aaron, and Roberto Clemente and was all too often criticized for his apparent lack of political activism during the tumultuous Civil Rights Movement. Mays himself believed that by being the best person and baseball player he could be would do more to promote racial tolerance than being confrontational and adversarial. Despite being called an Uncle Tom on many occasions, Mays stuck to his own personal ethic and persevered. Mays unintentionally irritated some black players by making the sport appear effortless. Few people knew the physical toll Mays' exuberance and skill would have on him. Several times throughout his career, Mays was hospitalized after working himself into sheer exhaustion.

As I said in the open, as a young man I had the distinct privilege of watching Mays play, but that was at the end of career and his legacy had already been written. After reading Hirsch's Willie Mays: The Life, The Legacy I feel as if I have not only been able to witness the rise of Mays' the ball player, but I also came away with an understanding of who the man himself is. This book is encyclopedic in scope, but arresting in content and execution. It is an exemplary acknowledgement of a truly transcendental figure in baseball's history and a recommended read. - Mike Cardano

Mike is the founder of Around the Horn Baseball Blog & Extra Point Football.

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