From the Vault: Marathon tilt brings lifelong memories
In these times of limited sports activity due to the coronavirus pandemic the 缅北禁地 will occasionally present 鈥淔rom the Vault,鈥� a story the sports staff has dug up from the past and reprinted here. Today is a column by Jonathan Guth on a Pittsburgh Pirates game he attended that appeared in the H-S on April 6, 2014. Played on April 3, at the time it clocked in as the longest home game in Pirates history:
As I settled into my seat on a cool Wednesday night at PNC Park, I anticipated that I would be home at a decent time.
Little did I know that the second game of the young season for the Pittsburgh Pirates would turn into the longest game ever played in the Steel City.
After leaving the ballpark early Thursday morning, the Bucs and Cubs had played a 16-inning marathon that lasted five hours and 55 minutes before Tony Sanchez singled home Jose Tabata for a 4-3 victory.
The new replay system played a factor in the record as the previous mark was five hours and 49 minutes on May 27, 2006, when Pittsburgh and Houston played an 18-inning tilt on the North Shore.
The icing on the cake was sitting with my girlfriend, Megan, and her grandmother, who is the biggest Neil Walker fan, for the whole affair. We got home around three in the morning. I was glad I didn鈥檛 have to work in the a.m.
Both offenses struggled, but the Pirates were able to take a 2-1 lead into the ninth to set the stage for Jason Grilli. It is always frustrating to have a blown save, but it set the stage for some bonus baseball on 鈥淏uc Night.鈥� The one-dollar promotion for popcorn and hot dogs was needed.
Anthony Rizzo鈥檚 home run to right field to lead off the 12th put the Cubs up, 3-2, and most of the crowd decided to drift off into the chilly night.
The battling Bucs came right back in the bottom half of the inning when Starling Marte singled home Clint Barmes with two outs to send the game into the 13th inning.
The Pirates鈥� never-say-die attitude is a constant reminder to never give up and also remember what it鈥檚 like to be a Cubs fan. The poor family sitting in front of us came all the way from the Windy City to enjoy the opening series but didn鈥檛 have too much to celebrate from the first two games.
The remaining die-hards started WWE-style chants, removed their shirts and enjoyed dancing as the tilt moved deeper into the early morning.
Pittsurgh had a tremendous opportunity with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 13th, but Clint Barmes couldn鈥檛 end it.
Andrew McCutchen also failed to drive in the winning run, and it just looked like the Bucs were not going to be able to get the job done.
The 14th-inning stretch came, but did not produce any results as it started to become a relief when the game was going to be over.
I was tempted to put my 50 mile-per-hour fastball to the test, or take a turn at the plate, as both teams were running out of players.
Sanchez stated that he was having trouble staying awake sitting in the dugout waiting for his turn at bat, but the young catcher, who wouldn鈥檛 have been available if back-up Chris Stewart wasn鈥檛 injured, showed the poise of a seasoned veteran in knocking in the winning run.
ROOT 缅北禁地 stuck to the format with the post-game interview, and everybody went home happy 鈥� and very tired.
I will admit to being relieved it was over, but, when I reflect on this in the future, I will never forget my nearly six-hour experience at PNC Park.