Winter Meetings charity auction to help renovate Willie Mays Park

DALLAS -- Willie Mays’ legacy was celebrated heavily in 2024, and in 2025, Major League Baseball will continue to honor his life by focusing on the very field where he started his baseball journey.

Since 2012, MLB has held a charity auction at the Winter Meetings that raises funds for a special cause. This year’s online auction, which launched Monday, will serve as a continuation of the memorable effort of last June’s MLB at Rickwood Field experience. Proceeds will benefit Willie Mays Park in Mays’ hometown of Fairfield, Ala., a field that has served generations of aspiring youth baseball players in the area.

The field has fallen into some disrepair and has been unusable for most competitive levels of the game. The money raised this week during the auction will go directly toward refurbishing this field.

“We never saw our time there as a one-time engagement for our sport, that’s why we’re excited to have this current opportunity right in front of us right now,” said April Brown, MLB’s senior vice president of social responsibility. “Right in the town where the great Willie Mays grew up, at a field that was named in his honor in 1985. A field that -- after a few decades of wear and tear and use -- could use a little love.”

The auction, which is now live at MLB.com/wintermeetingsauction until Thursday, Dec. 12 at 10 p.m. ET, provides a diverse offering of memorable baseball experiences for everyone, including special interactions with Major League stars, such as Mike Trout; VIP experiences at MLB and MiLB ballparks, and incredible on-field opportunities, such as ceremonial first pitches.

Other examples of items up for bid include:

• 2025 MLB All-Star Week in Atlanta: Tickets to all events at Truist Park, including the All-Star Game, Home Run Derby, Futures Game and All-Star Celebrity Softball Game, as well as the live 2025 Draft

• Special meet and greets with Trout, 2023 National League Rookie of the Year and All-Star Corbin Carroll, Orioles executive vice president and GM Mike Elias or manager Brandon Hyde, players and coaches from the Athletics, White Sox, Reds, Tigers, Royals, Marlins, Mets, Rangers and more

• Personal experiences, including a hitting lesson with Nats hitting coach Darnell Coles, throwing a bullpen session pregame in the Rays' bullpen with instruction from bullpen coach Jorge Moncada, meeting members of the Rays' bullpen and taking a tour of the Rays' private bullpen lounge

All items and experiences have been donated by all 30 MLB clubs, more than 40 Minor League clubs, the Office of the Commissioner, MLB Network and the Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. A full listing of all items available can be found here.

The Giants and Cardinals played a regular-season game last June at Rickwood Field, the oldest ballpark in baseball history and the former home of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues. Rickwood was Mays’ first professional ballpark -- he played for the Black Barons for 13 games in 1948 while he was still in high school.

Willie Mays Park, near where Mays grew up, is nearby in Fairfield, Ala.

“The story of this park isn’t just about Fairfield,” said Cedric Norman, Councilman of District 4 in Fairfield. “ It’s about preserving the spirit of baseball itself. It’s about creating a space for the next generation of players and fans to feel inspired by the greatness of Willie Mays and the values he stood for: hard work and perseverance.

“We need your support to bring new life into this park, to the fields where kids can play and honor the legacy of the man who showed what greatness looks like. Willie was a strong supporter of his hometown … baseball has always been about community. This is our chance to prove it.”

Michael Mays, Willie’s son, was heavily involved with the Rickwood Game last summer. His presence there was even more poignant after news emerged that the Hall of Fame outfielder passed away the day before the game was to be played at age 93.

Michael Mays joined a panel of dignitaries in Dallas on Monday morning to introduce the Winter Meetings charity auction and advocate for the fundraising aspect of the event.

“I couldn’t think of a better way or a better place to jumpstart these initiatives than with MLB and Rickwood,” Michael Mays said. “My father left me with a simple task: bring as much camaraderie and support to struggling youth as we can."

Former MLB pitcher Jake Peavy, an Alabama native who spent ample time with Mays during his time playing for the Giants toward the end of his career, has been a vocal proponent of renovating areas in his home state where Mays grew up. Peavy was a big presence at the Rickwood Game and the weeks leading up to it and has vowed to continue support efforts in the area.

“As an Alabama native who is now back in Alabama, the game at Rickwood was as special as anything I’ve been a part of in baseball,” Peavy said. “Games need to be continued to be played at Rickwood. I’m honored to stand here and announce this, to stand alongside Michael and his family to see this become all it can be.”