When Josh Hamilton was announced in the pre-game lineups, the crowd gave him a huge reception, not surprisingly. When he got to mid-field to stand with the Hall of Famers, Willie Mays was the guy who would be standing next to Hamilton. Willie was involved in a conversation with Fukudome, facing the opposite direction to Hamilton. Hamilton's name came over the speaker, and he ran out to the position.
Willie never looked at Hamilton. Hamilton tapped him on the shoulder to say hi, and pay his respects, and Mays did not turn around. Hamilton then made a little gesture like he was going to tap him again, but then changed his mind and stood there, sort of lonely. Willie still hadn't turned around.
Mays had finished his conversation with Fukudome, and eventually turned to face front. Best I can tell, he never even glanced to his left at Hamilton.
Perhaps Willie is just an old man and isn’t all that sharp. Couldn’t hear Hamilton's name. Didn’t feel the tap. Was engrossed in a conversation and is unable to multi-task. Perhaps the language barrier with Fukudome was also a distraction.
Some of that is no doubt true, but is it an explanation? Hamilton hit 28 homers in the 1st round of the derby. Wouldn’t an ordinary HoFer (or anyone, really) have some interest in meeting the guy who did that? Wouldn’t most people acknowledge another person standing right next to them? This is a pretty exclusive club these guys are in. It's not like the annoying person standing next to you in the grocery store line.
Yet Mays never acknowledged Hamilton. Josh ended up shaking hands with Fukudome, on the other side of Mays by reaching around behind Mays' back to acknowledge his NL counterpart! Mays didn't flinch.
Willie Mays is known as a kind man, as far as I know. I wonder whether Willie was giving the cold shoulder to Hamilton in moral judgment of Hamilton’s past indiscretions.
