By BRIAN COSTELLO
April 20, 2008
As both New York baseball stadiums prepare to close, The Post looks back at the 25 most memorable moments in the history of Shea. This week, No. 22.
May 14, 1972
The Mets made waves by bringing back New York favorite Willie Mays in a trade with the Giants. Mays was 41 years old and his best days were behind him, but he still was immensely popular in New York, where he began his career with the Giants.
Mays made his Mets debut on a Sunday afternoon, three days after the trade. In a dramatic twist, the game was against the Giants, the team he played with for 21 years.
A crowd of 35,505 fans showed up to see Mays' debut. After a rain delay, he made his first plate appearance at 2:40 that afternoon, drawing a walk. He played first base and batted leadoff for the Mets, and provided the drama the fans wanted to see when he broke a 4-4 tie in the fifth inning with a home run to left field off of Don Carrithers. The homer proved to be the difference in the Mets' 5-4 victory.
"It's a strange feeling to be batting against the club I played with for 20 years," Mays said after the game. "You look up and see 'Giants' written on their shirts, and feel you should be out there."
Mays also struck out and walked once more in the game. Afterward, everyone only wanted to talk about the big home run.
"That was my first hit as a Met," Mays said. "And my first hit as a Giant was a home run, too."
Mays would bat .267 that season for the Mets and hit seven more home runs. The following year would be his final in baseball. He hit .211 with six home runs, retiring with 660 career homers.
