How Willie Mays inspired a Mets rookie teammate in his final campaign

George Theodore was a rookie left fielder for the New York Mets in 1973 when he found himself sharing the outfield with Willie Mays. The two were on the opposite ends of their respective careers; Mays playing in the last of his 22 Hall of Fame seasons, Theodore working to gain a toehold in the starting lineup. Returning to Flushing during Mays' 80th birthday weekend for a series of New York Mets Alumni Association events, Theodore said the Hall of Famer's presence on the field energized his teammates.

“Willie Mays had a magnetism that nobody had," Theodore said. "You could just feel it. He'd get up to hit and you kind of fed off the crowd. He was such a positive person; I was so happy to get to know him.”

George Theodore / N. Diunte

Ironically, Theodore's greatest memory playing alongside Mays was not the lessons learned on how to patrol the outfield, or watching Mays rekindle the spirit of the Polo Grounds, but a time when he was given an error on a play he shared with Mays.

Playing together in the outfield during the June 11, 1973 game against Mays' former team, a 400-foot smash was hit to left-center and both outfielders pursued it. Theodore described how the play unfolded.

Willie Mays / N. Diunte

“One game on national TV, I was in left field and he was in center," he said. "The ball was hit into left-center and I think I'll go get it because Willie couldn't throw too much at the time. He beats me there with his beautiful instincts [which were evident] even then, and he gets to the ball. He then tosses it to me for me to throw it, but I didn't know it was coming, so it dropped. I quickly picked up it and I threw it in. They gave me an error. I think they changed it subsequently, but that was the biggest honor I could have, taking that error from Willie Mays.”