RIP Willie Mays

[gunhilltrain]

Notable that he started with the Giants when they were still in New York, and then spent much of his career in San Francisco. Then, at the end, he was back in New York with the Mets until 1973. It's ancient history now, but residents of The Bronx and Manhattan who didn't like the Yankees rooted for the Giants. My dad was a fan, but my grandfather and uncle went for the Yankees. The Mets picked up a lot of lost Giants and Dodgers fans when they were formed in 1962.

Note how close the Polo Grounds (in the background) and where Mays first played was to Yankee Stadium (in the foreground). One could merely walk across the bridge from one to the other. The Mets played their first two seasons in the Polo Grounds until moving to Shea Stadium in 1964.

Polo Grounds and Yankee Stadium

 

[gunhilltrain]

Willie Mays makes his famous catch at the Polo Grounds. It was a strangely designed stadium, with the entrance to the clubhouse at the left in fair territory. The center field distance was pretty deep at 483 feet.

Mays at the Polo Grounds

 

[lovecraft68]

Absolute legend, a total five tool player. Only one close in modern times was Griffey JR who still managed some crazy numbers but lost a lot of time with injuries.

I was a huge baseball fan from the late seventies until the early 2000's, then began getting bored-as did a lot of people-and the last few years I haven't bothered at all. Over paid, entitled, still juicing, or when not, the league juices the ball. The stat nerds have ruined the game, and the players are whiny divas.

Back when Mays, Aaron, Mantle, Gibson and so many others....the 40's to the 70's was BB's golden age, and its not coming back. Watching the old footage is amazing, and just think, back then these guys were hardly on TV, it was mostly radio and people didn't get to see how great these men were day in and day out.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Absolute legend, a total five tool player. Only one close in modern times was Griffey JR who still managed some crazy numbers but lost a lot of time with injuries.

I was a huge baseball fan from the late seventies until the early 2000's, then began getting bored-as did a lot of people-and the last few years I haven't bothered at all. Over paid, entitled, still juicing, or when not, the league juices the ball. The stat nerds have ruined the game, and the players are whiny divas.

Back when Mays, Aaron, Mantle, Gibson and so many others....the 40's to the 70's was BB's golden age, and its not coming back. Watching the old footage is amazing, and just think, back then these guys were hardly on TV, it was mostly radio and people didn't get to see how great these men were day in and day out.

When I was a kid, my relatives were definitely watching baseball on TV, not listening to it on radio that much. That would be in the very early 1960's. My uncle was a real Yankee fanatic, and he often went to games at Yankee Stadium. It was easy for him to get there, being only a few miles from his house.

Was the past really better? Or is it our lost youth that we really mourn?

 

[litfan10]

Growing up with a family from Staten Island, we were diehard Mets fans. Managed to see Tom Seaver, Tug McGraw and Buddy Harrelson play during various visits to the city which always included trips to Shea Stadium.

I wanted to name my son Shea (both for the stadium and a character I loved in Sword of Shannara) but my then wife vetoed that.

 

[MillieDynamite]

My father and publisher have been discussing this since the news broke. While I knew his name, I was unaware of his greatness until I read their postings in our chat group. Jackie Robinson's number, 42, is the only number retired across Major League Baseball (MLB). My father believes that Babe Ruth's No. 3, Lou Gehrig's No. 4, and Willie Mays's No. 24 should be added to that list.