Willie Mays Makes Major League Debut

May 25, 1951. Willie Mays of the New York Giants makes his debut against the Philadelphia Phillies at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Mays goes 0 for 5 in the 8-5 Giants win, but makes two outstanding catches. And as they say the rest is history.

Joe Glasgow is a former senior staff writer at Fanstop.com, and is the author of the book Play Ball! Growing Up With Baseball https://amzn.to/2o4M62h

Philadelphia's Shibe Park

On this date in baseball history Shibe Park in Philadelphia becomes the first concrete and steel stadium in Major League baseball history. It was originally the home of the Philadelphia Athletics, and a shared facility with the Philadelphia Phillies beginning in 1938. Renamed in Connie Mack stadium in 1953, in honor of Connie Mack's long service as the Athletics manager. The A's played in the park until 1954, when they moved to Kansas City for the 1955 season. It was the home of the Philadelphia Phillies until Veteran's Stadium became their new home. The ballpark was demolished in 1975.