Better late than never.
It was announced Monday that Willie Mays and Yogi Berra would be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honor. The Hall of Famers are among 17 people to be honored this year by President Barack Obama.
“From public servants who helped us meet defining challenges of our time to artists who expanded our imaginations, from leaders who have made our union more perfect to athletes who have inspired millions of fans, these men and women have enriched our lives and helped define our shared experience as Americans,” Obama said in a statement.
Mays spent 22 years in the Majors, finishing with 660 home runs…second to only Babe Ruth at the time. He was a 20-time All-Star. Berra, who died in September, won three American League MVP Awards and 10 World Series rings while with the New York Yankees.
"His life was truly the embodiment of the American dream.” – Hal Steinbrenner on Yogi Berra. https://t.co/FMjZDbzQbr pic.twitter.com/KRYPO9ANta
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) November 17, 2015
Mays and Berra will be the tenth and eleventh baseball players to receive the honor and the first since Ernie Banks received his two years ago.
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