i second the emotion of mccovey being a clutch hitter. this is the era that i watched baseball. he was the number one most feared hitter of the pitchers. you could literally see the perspiration on the pitchers. even though they stacked the field like crazy (shortstop was almost on top of second base), mccovey hit the ball so hard, that it just didnt matter. the first baseman would be standing feet away from the foul line, and couldnt get the screams that flew down the line. i was a giants fan, and liked mays, but mays simply was not as good in the clutch. mccovey was just dangerous in a way that no other hitter was.

but i dont think he was overshadowed by mays, marichal and cepeda. he was well known at the time. that is the problem with so many reviews. they come from people who did not actually know that era. the giants were known for their 3 m boys. cepeda was good, but not in the same class as mccovey.

mccovey was not underrated by those of his era. but just like al kaline, mccovey wasnt into the flash like mays and mantle were. one big reason for the success of willie mays is that mccovey batted right behind him.

some people, like pete rose, get better in time, because reviews come from those who review stats, instead of having actual knowledge of seeing the player in action. rose was not even a superstar in his day. he was a singles hitter. he was not even a superstar on his own team. no one in their right mind would have traded him for any of his 3 teammates (bench, perez, or morgan).

Sabermetricians deny that there is such a thing as clutch hitting. The existence of a player like McCovey puts that conviction to the test, as he would certainly rank among the greatest clutch hitters of all time. McCovey had 18 grand slams - an record 3 of them as a pinch hitter. Like his teammate Mays, he achieved this during the 1960s, a period of notoriously low offense. (I wonder why - was it the explosion of new pitches, including official indifference toward the spitball?) McCovey's performance in the clutch may be attributed to two factors - platooning with fellow 1B Orlando Cepeda, which meant he had to make the most of his opportunities, and having one of the best eyes in the game, which translated into several seasons with 100+ BB. One of the game's most underrated players, McCovey remains known primarily to Giants fans, but deserves wider recognition.

Willie roped four hits in his bigleague debut en route to batting .354 to win the 1959 Rookie of the Year award. Ten years later, he was named MVP after leading the National League in homers (45), RBI's (126), and slugging percentage (.656) for the second straight season.

Amazing player.

Willie McCovey of the San Francisco Giants (1959 - 1973, 1977 - 1980) was the top left-handed homerun hitter in the N.L. history with 521. Second only to Lou Gehrig with 18 Grand Slams. Led N.L. in homers, three times and RBI'S twice. N.L. Rookie of the Year in 1959, MVP in 1969 and comeback player of the year in 1977. Teamed with Willie Mays for awesome 1-2 power punch.

Not in top 30

Sadly swallowed whole by the shadows of Mays, Marichal & Cepeda, Willie McCovey may be the only poerhitter in history to've earned his nickname, "Stretch", from a defensive attribute. He hit 521 home runs, same as Ted Williams. Led leagu in home runs 3 times, RBI twice. 1969 MVP. It's nice to see that the new Giants stadium has an area named after him(McCovey Cove).