Hall of Famer Willie McCovey dies

WIRE SERVICES

Willie McCovey, the sweet-swinging Hall of Famer nicknamed "Stretch" for his 6-foot-4 height and those long arms, died Wednesday. He was 80.

The San Francisco Giants announced McCovey's death, saying the fearsome hitter passed "peacefully" in the afternoon "after losing his battle with ongoing health issues."

A former first baseman and left fielder, McCovey was a career .270 hitter with 521 home runs and 1,555 RBI in 22 major league seasons, 19 of them with the Giants. He also played for the Athletics and Padres.

McCovey made his major league debut at age 21 on July 30, 1959, after dominating the Pacific Coast League that year. He played alongside the other Willie — Hall of Famer Willie Mays — into the 1972 season before Mays was traded to the New York Mets that May.

In his debut, McCovey went 4 for 4 with two triples, two RBI and three runs scored in a 7-2 win against Philadelphia — and that began a stretch of the Giants winning 10 out of 12 games.

McCovey batted .354 with 13 homers, 38 RBI, five triples and nine doubles on the way to winning NL Rookie of the Year.

He had attended games at AT&T Park as recently as the final game of the season.

"For more than six decades, he gave his heart and soul to the Giants," Giants President and CEO Larry Baer said. "As one of the greatest players of all time, as a quiet leader in the clubhouse, as a mentor to the Giants who followed in his footsteps, as an inspiration to our Junior Giants, and as a fan cheering on the team from his booth."

Former Twins pitcher Bill Fischer, who spent more than seven decades as a player and coach in professional baseball, died Tuesday. He was 88. Fisher posted a 45-58 career record with a 4.34 ERA playing for the White Sox, Tigers, Senators and Kansas City Athletics before his last year with the Twins in 1964, where he was 0-1 with a 7.36 ERA in nine games.

Three days after a World Series victory that transformed him from a postseason flop to an October hero, Red Sox lefthander David Price said at the team's victory parade Wednesday that he would stay in Boston rather than opt out of his contract and become a free agent.

Price will earn $127 million over the next four years, the remainder of a seven-year, $217 million contract he signed before the 2016 season that gave him the right to opt out after the third year.