The San Francisco Giants held their first summer camp practice on Friday as they prepare for the truncated season of 60 MLB games. But something was missing when the Giants returned to Oracle Park: the statue of Willie McCovey.
While protesters have been toppled by protesters and recently removed by authorities across the country, the Giants tore down the McCovey statue to keep it safe during a construction project, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
The statue was located at McCovey Point, in China Basin Park, on the other side of a body of water informally known as McCovey Cove, behind the wall in Oracle Park’s right field.
The McCovey statue was discovered in 2003, and the Giants don’t expect it to reappear until 2023, when the initial phase of the oceanfront project should be complete.
The statue is one of the five former Giants stars associated with Oracle Park. The other honored players are Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, Willie Mays and Gaylord Perry.
A native of Mobile and a former student of Port City Central High School, McCovey played 19 seasons with the Giants, hit 521 major league home runs, and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1986. First baseman died in 2018. .
WATCH THE SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS TRIBUTE TO WILLIE MCCOVEY
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ AMarkG1.
