On May 2, 1920, the Boston Braves (now Atlanta) and the Brooklyn Robins (now Dodgers) faced each other at Braves Field. The game was balanced 1-1 with the Robbins in the beginning of the 5th inning and the Braves in the bottom of the 6th getting a point each. And no more points came out.
The game, which started at 3:00 PM, continued until darkness fell. In the past, conditions for night games were not prepared, so the game could not be played further when the sun went down. The game, which ended 1-1 in 3 hours and 50 minutes, was an overtime game that lasted 26 times. It was the longest inning game in MLB history.
On May 9, 1984, the Milwaukee Brewers faced off against the Chicago White Sox. This game was the 25th match, one inning short of the previous longest inning game. However, the game time was overwhelmingly long.
In the top of the ninth, Milwaukee scored two runs to take a 3-1 lead. However, in the bottom of the ninth, the White Sox caught up with two runs and tied the game 3-3. The game headed for overtime was hardly ever stopped. To make matters worse, at the time, the American League had a so-called curfew rule that prevented games from playing after 1:00 am. As a result, the game was declared suspended after the 17th inning. And the next day, it resumed at 6:30 pm and ended at 9:12 pm. The game, which consumed a total of 8 hours and 6 minutes, including 5 hours and 24 minutes the previous day, set a record for the longest time in major league history. Harold Baines, who hit the walk-off home run in the bottom of the 25th inning, said, “I’m just happy that the game is over.”
As a rule, there are no draws in the major leagues. It is an end-to-end match that is fought until one side wins. He is making good use of the charm of baseball, which is ‘it’s not over until it’s over’. If you fell asleep while watching baseball and didn’t win, you were playing baseball until you woke up. Even though he looks crude and reckless, there were many people who thought it was the charm of the major leagues.
However, it is expected that such baseball will be difficult to see now. The secretariat announced that it would permanently maintain the overtime matchup, which was temporarily applied. A game that starts with a runner on second base is easier to score than an offense that starts with the batter reaching base. So, it prevents a super long game without a promise from being produced.
It was in the shortened season in 2020 that the major leagues introduced an overtime game. Even when match-ups were introduced on the international stage, the WBC was squeamish, but when Corona 19 broke out, it was accepted to protect players.
In fact, the lengthy overtime match has noticeably decreased. There were 39 games in 2018 and 37 games in 2019 where 13 or more overtimes were played, but only 11 games in 2020-22 when the match was played. Gyeonggi Province, which lasted more than 15 overtimes, only had one each in 2021 and 2022.
2018 – 39 matches
2019 – 37 matches
2020 – 2 matches
2021 – 3 matches
2022 – 6 matches
When matchmaking first appeared, everyone was awkward. The Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Angels went head to head in their 2020 season opener. Shohei Ohtani, the Angels’ last hitter in the top of the ninth inning, had to go in as a runner on second base in the top of the 10th inning. But he had never been through this situation, so he just stared blankly. He even made a wistful judgment in Rusang because he came in abruptly.
The very next day, the New York Mets suffered a game-changing loss to Atlanta. Luis Rojas, who took over as manager of the Mets that year, was well aware of the game-playing theory. However, he could not hide his embarrassment when he bumped into him in a real fight. Even the leader who studied baseball for the rest of his life became complicated in his head. Rojas has revealed that he “will get better the more he plays.”
The unfamiliar match-up became familiar as time passed. After three seasons together, it has become an event that decorates the overtime. It was also a welcome look on the field. The secretariat, which was obsessed with shortening the game time, naturally had no reason to dislike the game. And the managers on the front lines also supported the match-up for the most part because the roster management became much easier. Players who had high voices of opposition in the beginning gradually changed to an atmosphere of conformity. If it were not for the cooperation of the players, a permanent conversion of the match to a unanimous decision would not have been possible.
It is the fans who are the most opposed to this decision. In particular, traditionalists who valued the basis of baseball did not recognize the game as baseball. Artificially putting a runner on second base itself was seen as deception. It was criticized as a system that ignores the importance of the process.
There were also people who welcomed the match. He pointed out that playing baseball for too long reduces performance. When competition gets boring, everyone gets tired. Viewers also focus more on ‘when the game ends’ rather than ‘how the game ends’. This shift in priorities is never a good thing. Rather, it can reduce the fun of baseball. 메이저놀이터
Initially, it was pointed out that the match-up could lead to the uniformity of the scoring method. With a runner on second base, he predicted that bunt attempts would increase and that he would aim for a score with a sacrifice fly. Contrary to concerns, however, he did not unconditionally bunt. In the case of the visiting team that attacks first, this is because the probability of winning at 3rd base with 1 out is lower than at 2nd base in case of a tie (decreased from 50% to 48% according to the’Washington Post’ in 2020). Clubs that have become proficient in statistical analysis could not have been unaware of this.
The weak point of the game is the record. Its purpose is to protect the pitcher, but it has not been able to protect the pitcher on record. Only the existing second base runner is not recognized as self-accusation, but the remaining runs are treated as self-accusation. In addition, if the second base runner enters home and the game is over, the loss must be overwritten even if there is no self-blame. For a pitcher who has to throw a ball with a runner behind him, the burden is doubled.
Baseball is a sport of records. It has a higher percentage of records than any other sport. However, the current match-up rules are favorable to hitters and harsh on pitchers. It is a tilted playing field that cannot be a fair competition. In order for the evaluation of match-ups to change more favorably than now, supplementation must be made in terms of records.
It is unusual for match-and-match debates to understand both pros and cons. Depending on what point of view you view baseball, your position will change. It’s not like I can’t blindly reject it just because it’s different from me. It is a question without an answer. Therefore, it is necessary to find an ‘answer close to the correct answer’ after sufficient discussion.