Willie McCovey, the Giants first baseman who terrorized pitchers with his majestic home runs and charmed fans with his easy grace, died Wednesday. He was 80.
One of the most beloved Giants of all-time, McCovey slugged 521 home runs over the course of a career that spanned four decades. He will be best remembered as Willie Mays tag-team partner in San Francisco’s formidable lineups of the 1960s.
While Mays brought the theatrics, McCovey was the reliable straight man and the most feared left-handed hitter of his era. Listed at 6-foot-4, and wiry strong at 198 pounds, McCovey uncoiled a sweeping swing that blasted balls into orbit.