Duke Snider

Duke Snider played center in Ebbets Field and stickball on the streets of Brooklyn. He was immortalized in a song recalling a golden era in baseball and was once part of one of the sport’s great debates.

Snider, the Hall of Famer for the charmed “Boys of Summer” who helped the Dodgers bring their elusive and only World Series crown to Brooklyn, died Sunday. He was 84.

“Duke was a fine man, a terrific hitter and a great friend, even though he was a Dodger,” Giants Hall of Famer Willie Mays said, remembering his crosstown rival.

“The Duke of Flatbush” died at the Valle Vista Convalescent Hospital in Escondido, Calif., according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, which announced the death on behalf of the family. Snider had been ill for months. His family said he died of natural causes.

Snider hit .295 with 407 career home runs, played in the World Series six times and won two championships. But the eight-time All-Star was defined by much more than his stats — he was, after all, part of the love affair between Brooklyn and “Dem Bums” who lived in the local neighborhoods.

Ebbets Field was filled with stars such as Pee Wee Reese, Roy Campanella and Gil Hodges during that 1955 championship season. Yet it is Snider’s name that refrains in “Talkin’ Baseball.”

“Willie, Mickey, and the Duke,” goes the popular ballpark song, which marks its 30th anniversary this year.