Willie Mays honored with Cable Car No. 24 for his 85th

On Friday, the city decided it was high time to dedicate it to arguably the greatest baseball player ever.

There were balloons, speeches, plaques, more speeches and even a videotaped greeting from a Mays fan in Washington, D.C., who had some free time.

[...] no one ever gave him a cable car before, and he gazed at his fellow icon fondly, pulled on its bell rope (even though a sign said not to) and took a look at a brass plaque near the front door that called him a “model for all baseball players who came after him.”

The line of adoring fans waiting patiently at the car barn to have their picture taken with Mays included Mayor Ed Lee, who recalled throwing out a ceremonial first pitch at the ballpark not long ago.

“You would have hit that one over the fence,” Lee said, and Mays smiled again, not wishing to offend his host by agreeing with the most irrefutable statement in mayoral history.

Mays tucked it gingerly into his pocket for safekeeping the way an ordinary mortal might tuck away an autographed Mays baseball card.

[...] it was time for Mays to say a few words, and he quickly reminded the invited guests inside the car barn how hard it can be both to play baseball and to be a fan.

Mays, in his Giants cap and orange Giants necktie, said it with a smile so gracious and understanding that nobody could take offense, not even Giants President Larry Baer and the other front office execs sitting beside him.

Cable car gripwoman Willa Jones said running the car for Mays and the big shots, even for only a few blocks, was a lot of pressure.

The center fielder got into the back of a police car with its red lights flashing that, in whisking him away from the ceremony, was finally able to approach Mays speed.