Doubleheaders And Long Baseball Games-Anyone Ever Been To Either?

[Mitchell]

Doubleheaders are played rarely anymore, except in cases of makeup games for earlier rainouts, but I wanted to post to inquire if anyone has ever been to either a doubleheader, or a ridiculously long baseball game.

I've been to two doubleheaders in my life, and one extremely long game. The first doubleheader was a twi night one at Shea Stadium in 1986 between the New York Mets and the Chicago Cubs. I believe the teams split the two games.

The second doubleheader was in 1987 at old Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, between the Mets and Braves. I had gone to Atlanta with my father for three days, to see the Braves play at home, and the first game got rained out, so the next night there was a doubleheader, with both games won by the Mets.

I also went to a nineteen inning game in July 1985 with a cross country teen tour, at the old Houston Astrodome. The game lasted until 130 in the morning, and was won by the then Montreal Expos.

Do any baseball fans remember the infamous nineteen inning game in Atlanta on July 4-5 1985, between the Mets and Braves? The game had two rain delays, and lasted six hours and ten minutes, and was won by the Mets, 16-13. The weirdest part was the home run hit by Atlanta pitcher Rick Camp, one of the worst hitters to ever play the game. The teen tour company I went with had staggered tours leaving New York on different days, with all of the tours meeting in California. There was a tour group that left New York two days after the one I was with left, and they told us they were at the nineteen inning game in Atlanta, and it was unreal.

So that's the question. Has anyone been to any mega long games, or doubleheaders? If so, what did you think?

Mitch

 

[McNoodle]

My girlfriend and I went to a doubleheader in Minnesota in 96. The Twins were playing the Yankees and as is quite common, each team won once. Neither game went to extras but one thing I recall was it was Mariano Reveira's rookie season and he came in to close up the second game and he just blew every batter he faced away.

Consequently I swore never to go to a doubleheader again and I haven't. We arrived at the ballpark at 2 p.m. that day and left at 10 p.m. Not only did I miss my one and only chance to catch a foul ball because my wife and I snuck out of our original seats to go sit closer because our section was virtually empty (ball was hit right where we had been a couple innings earlier) but also I had left my lights on in my car so I came out to a dead battery and had to find someone willing to give us a boost. Whatta day! 😀

 

[Mitchell]

Mcnoodle, thanks for telling me about your DH experience. Yes, DH's are very long days. Sorry to hear about the dead battery on your car.

I have a book on the 1969 Mets. They had 12 scheduled DH's, and had to play 10 more, due to rainouts. Back then, team payrolls were low, and ticket prices were cheap, so teams could afford to give away two games for the price of one. Also, before many of the new ballparks with good field drainage, games had to be cancelled at the smallest amount of rain. Now, unless their is heavy, persistant rain, or thunderstorms, it seems that rainouts are much less common.

I personally think that each team should schedule at least one doubleheader a year, on a Sunday, just to give the fans the experiences of such. Say if an average ticket at a ball park, costs $20 or $25, the team would be down a million in revenue for one day, by having 80 home admission days, instead of 81, but it would make the fans happy, to have one day a year, like the golden days of baseball, with a scheduled doubleheader. Knowing how greedy baseball teams are nowadays, I dont see it happening, but I wish it would, even once a year.

Mitch

 

[milagros317]

I attended plenty of doubleheaders as a kid in the 1950's. It was normal to have a doubleheader every Sunday for most teams.

The longest single game I've attended in terms of innings was 15 innings. It lasted about five hours and I got home around 2a.m.

 

[Dawgster]

I think I remember that 19 inning Mets/Braves game from '85. Wasn't it a July 4 game? With fireworks afterward? Starting at some ridiculous hour?

 

[milagros317]

I think I remember that 19 inning Mets/Braves game from '85. Wasn't it a July 4 game? With fireworks afterward? Starting at some ridiculous hour?

Yes, you remember correctly. Here's a description:

1985: A July 4th game against the New York Mets ends up going way into the night. The game was interrupted several times by rain and went deep into extra innings. In the wild back and forth game, Pitcher Rick Camp was forced to hit for himself, and ended up tying the game again. The Braves would eventually fall to the Mets in 19 innings, but not before the clock struck 4am. In an odd side note the Braves decided to go ahead with scheduled fireworks show, and ballpark neighbors were greeted with a wake up call they would never forget. After the season, in which the Braves finished 5th with a 66-96 record, the Brave rehire Bobby Cox, who managed the team from 1978-1981 to become the club's GM.

I watched that game on WTBS to the very end. 😀

The next day, then Braves announcer Skip Caray had this to say: "It was the first time in my life that I got home after 5a.m. and I wasn't ashamed of what I'd been doing."

 

[Mitchell]

Had I been home, I would have watched that game, but I was on the cross country teen tour I mentioned, and I was fast assleep in my hotel, lol.

I did hear the story about the Braves shooting off the fireworks. That was terribly lame of them. Were I them, I just would have wanted the teams out of the stadium, to clean up, and then go home.

The only other extra inning game I ever remember being at, was on the last day of the regular season in 1995, between the Mets and Braves at Shea. John Smoltz and Jason Isringhausen started, and both pitched shutout ball, until the Mets finally won it on a bases loaded walk in the 11th.

It's amazing to think that I've been to maybe fifty or more baseball games in my life, with only two extra innings games, but I'm going to the Braves-Phillies game this Saturday night in Philly, so who knows, maybe this will be my third.

Mitch

 

[Big_Dogg85]

I haven't had the opportunity to see many baseball games and the ones I've seen ended painfully quick. What I have been a part of was a doubleheader of a different sort... Canadians like me love our hockey (right McNoodle? 😀 ) Anyways, I work security at an NHL arena and this particular arena hosted The World Junior Championships last year: an international hockey tournament for 21 and under players. I was @ work from 1PM until just after midnight: the doubleheader was the Bronze Medal game and the Gold Medal game, which Canada won.

That's the extent of my long sports night, sorry it's not baseball related.