For just the second time in history, two MLB games stretched to 18 innings on the same day, as the Blue Jays beat the Rangers 4-3 in 18 and the Marlins edged the Mets 2-1 in 20 innings.
Rajai Davis hit a walk-off single for Toronto in the bottom of the 18th at Rogers Centre. The Rangers went 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position for the second time in club history (the Blue Jays were nearly as bad at 2-for-17) and left 17 men on base, one more than the Blue Jays. The game tied Toronto’s record for the longest in franchise history, according to ESPN Stats and Info.
The Mets and Marlins played a marathon for the second time this year, and each game featured the same starting pitchers. Miami’s José Fernández and New York’s Matt Harvey faced each other April 29, with the Marlins winning 4-3 in 15 innings. The pair lasted longer Saturday, with Fernández pitching for six innings and Harvey seven, before the latter left the game with tightness in his back. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, via ESPN Stats and Info, the last time two teams played two games that lasted at least 15 innings that featured the same pair of starting pitchers was 1884, when Jim Whitney of the Boston Beaneaters faced Old Hoss Radbourn of the Providence Grays.
Relief pitchers for each team — New York’s Shaun Marcum and Miami’s Kevin Slowey — pitched more innings than their team’s respective starters.
Long games always make for a hero, like Davis, and a goat, like Toronto’s Maicer Izturis. Izturis went 0-for-7, which was the worst of the day from either game.
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