It was quiet. Too quiet for a baseball game in Queens. On September 21, 2001, Shea Stadium didn't feel like the rowdy, beer-soaked cathedral Mets fans knew. It felt like a wake.
Ten days after the Twin Towers fell, New York City was still covered in a fine layer of gray dust and an unbearable amount of grief. Most people didn't even want to be there. I mean, honestly, how do you care about a slider on the outside corner when the skyline is missing two of its biggest pieces? But the Mike Piazza 9 11 homer changed the vibe in a way that’s still hard to explain 25 years later.
The Night Baseball Stopped Being a Game
Before we get to the swing, you have to understand the tension. There were over 41,000 people in the stands, but the air was heavy. Security was terrifying. Snipers were on the roof. National Guard members were everywhere. People were checking the exits, wondering if a stadium was the next target.
The Mets and the Atlanta Braves—who basically hated each other’s guts back then—didn't do the usual pre-game posturing. Instead, they hugged. They stood together during a pre-game ceremony that was so emotional it made grown men in the upper deck sob. John Franco, the Mets' legendary reliever and a Brooklyn kid, wore an FDNY hat. Bobby Valentine wore an NYPD cap.
The game itself was a bit of a slog for seven innings. It was tied 1-1. Then, in the top of the eighth, the Braves took a 2-1 lead. It felt like a gut punch. For a city that had been losing for ten days straight, a loss here felt like it would be just another reminder of how broken everything was.
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The Moment Everything Changed
In the bottom of the eighth, Steve Karsay was on the mound for Atlanta. Karsay was actually a local guy from Queens, which is a wild detail people forget. He was pitching to Mike Piazza with a runner on.
Piazza took a fastball for a strike. One-and-oh.
Then came the second pitch. It was a 94-mph heater that stayed a little too far over the middle of the plate. Piazza didn’t just hit it; he destroyed it. He launched it into the night toward left-center field.
As the ball cleared the fence, the sound in Shea Stadium changed. It wasn't just a "yay, we’re winning" cheer. It was a primal scream. It was a release of ten days of held breath. For the first time since the morning of September 11th, it felt okay to be loud. It felt okay to be happy.
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"I'm just so happy I gave the people something to cheer. There was a lot of emotion. It was just a surreal sort of energy out there." — Mike Piazza, post-game interview.
The Mets won 3-2. But nobody really cared about the standings.
Why the Mike Piazza 9 11 Homer Still Matters
People ask why we still talk about this specific home run. Players hit walk-offs all the time. But this wasn't about the box score.
Here is why it stuck:
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- It gave permission to heal. New Yorkers felt guilty about enjoying anything while the fires were still burning at Ground Zero. Piazza’s homer broke that spell.
- The "USA" chants. This was the first time many of us heard that chant in a sports context where it felt like it actually meant something deeper than just beating another country in the Olympics.
- The Jersey. The jersey Piazza wore that night is now in the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. It’s treated like a holy relic because, for one night, it was.
Kinda crazy to think about now, but there was a real debate about whether the season should even continue. Some thought it was disrespectful. Others thought it was a security risk. But that 400-foot blast basically settled the argument.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Historians
If you’re looking to dive deeper into the history of this moment, don't just watch the 30-second clip on YouTube. There’s a lot more to the story.
- Watch "11 Days in September": This is a documentary produced by the Mets that features raw interviews with the players. It shows how terrified they actually were to take the field.
- Check the Box Score: Look up the lineup from that night. Seeing names like Edgardo Alfonzo and Todd Zeile alongside the Braves' Chipper Jones puts the era into perspective.
- Visit the 9/11 Memorial: If you’re in NYC, go see the artifacts. It’s a sobering reminder that sports aren't just entertainment—they're a part of the cultural fabric that holds us together when things get bad.
The Mike Piazza 9 11 homer wasn't a miracle. It was just a game. But sometimes, a game is exactly what a city needs to remember how to live again.
To fully appreciate the legacy of this moment, visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s digital archive to see the original NYPD and FDNY caps worn by the staff, which remain some of the most significant pieces of 21st-century sports memorabilia. You can also listen to the original radio call by Howie Rose to hear the authentic, unedited reaction of a New Yorker witnessing the shift in the city's spirit in real-time.