Time traveling through New York

The Giants lost—but you already knew that, right?

The Polo Grounds have been gone for 60 years. The former home of Willie Mays and the New York Giants is now a housing project, appropriately named the Polo Grounds Towers. 

I did a little time traveling yesterday and made my way to the top of Manhattan, where the memories of Mays and the Polo Grounds are still alive. 

Painted on the wall of one tower is a vibrant mural of Mays’ powerful swing. Not far from there is a worn out plaque marking the location of home plate at the Polo Grounds.

Mays stood there 1,690 times. And for a moment I stood there, trying to imagine a field that stretched on forever—483 feet to center. 

On the lawn beneath the plaque, someone left a framed photo of Mays alongside a bouquet of orange flowers. I didn’t have anything to leave but smiled that someone else had. Willie Mays was once again at home plate in the Polo Grounds.

 

Up next: It’s the Rickwood Field game. The Giants and Cardinals will return to America’s oldest ballpark, where almost every legend of the game passed through at some point. Keaton Winn (3-6, 6.66 ERA) and Andre Pallante (2-3, 4.61 ERA) isn’t the marquee matchup anyone was hoping for, but it shouldn’t dampen the celebration of Willie Mays’ life and legacy. First pitch at 4:15 p.m.