NY native Mazzilli ready for Mets' Old-Timers Day

NEW YORK -- Former Major Leaguer Lee Mazzilli is looking forward to the Mets’ Old-Timers Day, the club’s first since 1994, on Saturday afternoon at Citi Field prior to the Rockies-Mets game that evening.

The Old-Timers’ Day player introductions will begin at 5 p.m. ET and single-game tickets are available on Mets.com/tickets. Gates will open at 4:10 p.m.

Mazzilli, a Brooklyn native, will be one of 59 former Mets who will attend the event, and he can’t wait to see old friends like John Stearns and Jon Matlack.

“All the guys are really looking forward to seeing each other. Baseball is a small fraternity that we have,” Mazzilli said via phone. “It’s just good to see the guys you played with, played against. There are so many teammates that you want to see and find out how they are doing. A lot of people are looking forward to telling stories, making stories bigger. It’s not as true as they were back then. That’s the fun part.”

But Mazzilli has a lot of true stories to tell. He was one of the most popular Mets over his two stints with the club, from 1976 to 1981 and again from 1986 to 1989. His best season as an active player was in 1979, when he led New York in Wins Above Replacement with 4.9. That same year, Mazzilli made his only All-Star appearance and had a game to remember, even though Dave Parker won the MVP because of his throwing skills.

Pinch-hitting for Gary Matthews, Mazzilli tied the game at 6 in the eighth inning by hitting a solo home run off Rangers closer Jim Kerns. An inning later, the National League had the bases loaded with Yankees left-hander Ron Guidry on the mound. Mazzilli managed to draw a walk, scoring Joe Morgan and giving the NL the victory.

That Midsummer Classic is one of three accomplishments Mazzilli treasures. The two others were getting called up to the big leagues late in the 1976 season and helping the Mets win the World Series 10 years later.

“That was the trifecta -- the three accomplishments you could have as a Major League player,” Mazzilli said.

His love for New York goes without saying, and it’s about more than just being from the Big Apple. There was something about New York that made him play better. He did not play as well for the Pirates and Rangers; it seems New York just brought out the best in him.

Playing 37 games with the Yankees in 1982 and later returning to the Mets as a pinch-hitter starting in '86 rejuvenated Mazzilli. In the World Series that fall, Mazzilli had two important pinch-hits in Games 6 and 7 against the Red Sox and scored two runs.

“Playing baseball in New York, it was different for me,” Mazzilli said. “It just like with [reliever] Johnny Franco. He started in the big leagues with Cincinnati, then he got traded and came home [to New York].

“Some people look at New York as a difficult place to play. … That was the only place to play. There is something in the air about playing in New York. It’s special. And to win in New York is icing on the cake.”

Today, Mazzilli is semi-retired and living in Florida with Dani, his wife of 40 years. For the last decade, Mazzilli has raised money to fight lung cancer, a disease that killed his brother Fred in 2012. The Fred Mazzilli Foundation is a nonprofit charity organization that raises funds and awareness in the battle against lung cancer.

In fact, the foundation is holding a bash at the Hard Rock Cafe at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 13. It includes an open bar, buffet, auction and raffle. Invited celebrity guests include David Cone, Joe Torre and Tim Teufel.

“We provide free lung screening and free CT scans to people who can’t afford it. It’s a great cause,” Mazzilli said. “We have been very fortunate with so many celebrities coming. Because it’s lung cancer, people think it’s self-inflicted from smoking or whatever. That’s not the case by any means.”