Greatest catch of all time?

Haven't waded through all five pages of this, but in case no one else has done it, I just wanted to put Tommie Agee and Ron Swoboda, '69 Mets, into the discussion. Carry on.

 

Chavez's catch didn't help his team win. Mays' did. Mays had to throw the ball an extra 100-plus feet too while spinning his body around 180 degrees.

I stand corrected, but nobody scored and his team WON. Chavez's team lost.

 

The final score of the game is not relevant to the "greatness" of a catch. Chavez's catch saved multiple runs in a tie game of considerable importance. So did Mays'. What happened after that isn't the issue.

 

I don't know where it ranks, but I do know this: Context does matter. If the Mets win that game, everyone points to the catch and it climbs the list of great catches. Consider the circumstances: Randolph comes to the mound, pitcher says, "I'm OK, Skip," next pitch is hit over the left field wall. That's good stuff.

As for Puckett's catch, it's up there because the Twins won and Puckett was also the guy to hit the homer later and win it. However, that catch would have been better without the plexiglas in the outfield. He didn't rob a home run. I think the plexiglas came down the next season.

 

bingo on the plexiglass.

 

Still a mystery.

 

First of all, Steve Bartman did not make a catch. The ball fell to the ground in foul territory.

Secondly, May's catch was a great one, no argument here. But if he was playing left field for the Mets on Thursday night, then people would probably consider that one the best catch of all time. My point is, I think more than necessary is made of that catch because it was Willie Mays.

 

I would argue he became Willie Mays (a legend rather than just another player) in part because of that catch.

 

Excellent point DoubleJ...that was, in fact. only Mays' 3rd big-league season and his first big year, 41-110-.345 at age 23.
That catch helped make him a legend ...not the other way around.

 

Swoboda made a great game-saving play in a tie game, but what helped make it legend was the TV camera angle. The camera was fixed on the ball and Swoboda was coming across from the right to make the play all along and made it, but was never in view until his catch.

Thus, all the TV viewer saw was Brooks Robinson's Texas Leaguer snared from nowhere. Production has improved greatly in 37 years (wassup, mark? )

 

Good point. It was a great catch, though, unlike Agee's two catches in that WS, which were nice plays but highly overrated.