PHILADELPHIA -- It's Willie Mays' 75th birthday on Saturday, all day. And the once-shining star of the New York/San Francisco Giants hasn't lost his edge.

If there was any doubt about his resolute feistiness, that was assuaged after an interview this week with Bob Costas on HBO. If you haven't seen the video, which premiered Tuesday and was replayed all week, a bit of the transcript is certainly worth relating.

Costas asks Mays: "Have you ever seen anybody as a contemporary? Have you ever seen anybody who [made you say]: 'That guy is as good or better than me'?"

Responds Mays: "I can't. You name one and I'll tell you no. Just name one. Anybody."

Costas: "Barry Bonds?"

Mays: "No. Barry couldn't throw with me. He might not have been able to run with me. Let's give him hitting, since he hit 73 [in 2001]. Don't think I can hit 73 home runs. I give him that. But what else?"

Kind of reminds of the time the cantankerous and much-despised Ty Cobb was invited back to a reunion of then-living Hall of Famers. Cobb, who hit .366 during a 24-year spikes-akimbo career, was asked how high his average would be if he was still playing in what was then the modern age of baseball (1950s).

"Oh, about .275," Cobb said without missing a beat.

"Why only .275, Mr. Cobb?" came the followup.

"'Cause I'm 70 years old."

Bonds could only chuckle when asked about the Costas interview with Mays, his godfather.

Mays was still king of the roost when Bonds was 4 years old and his father, Bobby, was a fledgling player trying to make his mark on the San Francisco scene. Bobby was Barry's hitting coach for much of his Major League career until his father died of cancer in 2003 at the age of 57. Mays has always been there and has since picked up the mantle as Bonds' spiritual leader.

At least once a spring over at the Giants camp in Scottsdale, Ariz., Mays can be seen at the batting cage giving his godson some tips.

A few years ago, Mays was having fun at Bonds' expense, telling anyone in the clubhouse who would listen that at his advanced age he was still a better hitter.

"Come on, old man," Bonds said with obvious sweetness. "You can't even see a ball anymore."

Mays had no ready quip for that.

The point is that Mays is still baseball royalty and a magnificent presence many days in the Giants' clubhouse at AT&T Park. Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Jackie Robinson and even Kirby Puckett are all gone. Some, like Maris, Jackie and Kirby, way before their time.

But Willie still remains as one-fifth of a living, breathing quintet of Giants greats: Mays, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry. Hall of Famers, all of them. A reminder of a bygone era, all of them.

They are connected to these times by Bonds and Giants manager Felipe Alou, who played with them all. And the Giants' hierarchy should be commended for keeping them involved with the team.

After the Giants moved from the Polo Grounds to the West Coast, Alou played for them with Mays from 1958 to 1963. Alou then was traded to Milwaukee, where he played with Hank Aaron until 1969, the period which included the Braves' move to Atlanta.

Alou managed Bonds in 2004 when the left-handed swinger hit homers 660 and 661 to pass Mays on the all-time list and later that season became only the third player in history to reach the 700-homer plateau.

So he can make the comparison.

"I played with Willie when we were both in our 20s," he said. "I always say he's the best player I've ever seen, without a doubt. And I played with Hank Aaron. I didn't get to see Barry every day when he was in his early 30s and late 20s, when a player is at the top of his game. Barry is not a Gold Glove guy now, not since I took over this team four years ago.

"I have to say that knowing Willie for so many years, traveling with him to Japan and playing in different places, that to me he's the best."

Mays obviously agrees. A right-handed hitter, he didn't have the switch-hitting power of Mantle, but he was a five-tool player before anyone even talked about such a thing. He had a better arm than Bonds can ever dream of. Mays is known for that signature play in which he robbed Cleveland's Vic Wertz with an over-the-shoulder grab of a drive into the cavernous center field at the old Polo Grounds in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, the last time the Giants won it all.

But what often gets lost in the recollection is that the Indians had runners on first and second and both were moving. After the catch, Mays whirled and made an arc of a throw nearly 300 feet to the infield. It was the perfect end to the perfect play.

Like Willie, that moment is eternal, preserved on grainy black-and-white celluloid. So happy birthday, old-timer. At 75, you'd hit .275 in the big leagues, too.