Astros win longest shutout ever played

April 15, 1968

The scoreboard says it all: "This is the longest game in major league

history ever to be played-- 22 innings --

without a run being scored"

24 Innings, Six Hours, One Run

By Vito Stellino

From The Sporting News, April 27, 1968

(Houston, Tex) Baseball's longest night was filled with moments of humor, drama, dullness and frustration - but, most of all, it was a nightmare for Al Weis.

Weis, utility infielder for the Mets who was filling in at shortstop because Bud Harrelson had a sore arm, let a bases-loaded grounder go through his legs to end the longest night game - and the longest scoreless contest - in baseball history April 15.

The Astros and the Mets matched zeroes for what seemed forever before Bob Aspromonte's grounder skipped through Weis' legs to score Norm Miller in the 24th inning. The run gave the Astros an incredible 1-0 victory in a six-hour and six-minute marathon that ended at 1:37 a.m. (Houston time).

No game had ever gone longer than 20 innings without scoring. No night games had ever gone longer than 22 innings before and that feat was accomplished last June 12 when the Senators edged the White Sox, 6-5. Gil Hodges was managing the Senators and had a victory to show for the long night's work. This time, as the manager of the Mets, he tasted defeat.

Pitchers In Command

As the pitchers completely dominated the action - a trend that is starting to worry baseball officials since low-scoring games bore the fans who like a lot of action - there were only brief moments of drama. Each club got a runner to third three times before the Astros finally scored.

But there were other diversions for the hardy band of about 1,000 fans who stuck out to the end and let out quite a cheer when a run was at long last tallied.

The fan-o-gram at the Astrodome entertained them with such bits like this message in the 16th inning: "I told you baseball wouldn't replace sex."

Weis, who led off and went only 1-for-9, including a groundout in the 17th inning with a runner on third, was the unwitting goat after rookie Les Rohr - the eighth Met pitcher and the 22nd Met in the game - got himself into a jam.

Miller led off the 24th with a single - the only hit the Astros got that inning. He moved to second on Rohr's balk and, after Jim Wynn was intentionally walked, moved up on Rusty Staub's groundout. After pinch-hitter John Bateman was walked intentionally, Aspromonte hit his grounder.

Weis, normally a second baseman who was injured last year and then was traded by the White Sox to the Mets during the winter, couldn't come up with the grounder and it was all over.

Equaled '06 Marathon

Jim Ray (c) Houston Astros

Pitching was the whole game as there were only 11 hits on each side. Met starter Tom Seaver allowed just one hit over the first nine innings and two hits in ten innings. Astro starter Don Wilson - the Astros used five pitchers and 17 players - allowed five hits in his nine-inning stint. Reliever Jim Ray allowed only two hits in seven innings and he was followed by Wade Blasingame who allowed just one hit the final four innings and got the victory.

The Mets previously lost the longest day game by time in baseball history on May 31, 1964, when they bowed to the San Francisco Giants, 8-6, in seven hours and 23 minutes.

Against the Astros, only pitchers Nolan Ryan and Jerry Koosman and catcher Greg Goossen failed to play for the Mets.

The Astros' best chance before they finally scored and the only play at the plate in the game came in the second inning. Hal King doubled - the only hit Seaver allowed in the first nine innings - and went to third on a wild pitch. Aspromonte then grounded to Ken Boswell at second and Boswell threw out King at the plate.

Rader Hits Liner

The Astros didn't get another runner to third until the 13th inning. Julio Gotay singled and went to second when Hector Torres walked. Dick Selma replaced Bill Short and pinch-hitter Doug Rader lined to right field with Gotay advancing to third on the play. Ron Davis popped out to end the inning.

In the 22nd inning, Staub walked with one out, took second on a wild pitch and moved to third on King's groundout. After Aspromonte was walked intentionally, Gotay struck out.

The Mets loaded the bases in the 12th inning. With one out, Jerry Grote singled. After pinch-hitter Phil Linz popped out, Weis singled and Boswell beat out an infield hit but Tommie Agee grounded out.

The Mets also threatened in the 19th. Cleon Jones singled and went to second on Ed Kranepool's sacrifice. After Ed Charles was intentionally walked, Grote struck out but Jones and Charles were running on the pitch, stealing third and second. Since he was now running out of players, Hodges let pitcher Danny Frisella bat for himself and he struck out.

Fortunately, both teams had open dates on April 16. The Mets caught a plane for New York right after the game. It had been originally scheduled to arrive in New York at 4 a.m. Eastern time but the game ended just 83 minutes earlier than that.

A Long Goodnight

by Bob Hulsey

"We hope you are enjoying tonight's third game as much as you enjoyed the first two." - Astrodome scoreboard message in the 20th inning.

Wade Blasingame (c) Houston Astros

The night of April 15th, 1968, illustrated the futility both clubs had experienced for the first six years. Neither were very good at scoring runs, made worse by the fact that both played in new ballparks that didn't give the hitter any cheapies. It took 24 innings before a run would score on this night and, for the dwindling Astrodome crowd, they were just happy it was the home team that scored it.

Starters Tom Seaver and Don Wilson were certainly capable of throwing goose eggs without much help. While both righthanders could and did set strikeout marks in their day, Seaver fanned just three Astros in ten innings while Wilson whiffed only five in nine. The night's strikeout king wouldn't appear until the 14th inning when Jim Ray relieved Danny Coombs. Ray struck out 11 Mets over the next seven innings, including Tommie Agee three times.

Agee, and outfielder Ron Swoboda, represented the third and fourth spots in Mets lineup. Agee went 0-for-10 with four strikeouts and watched his early-season batting average fall from .312 to .192 in one night. Swoboda also went 0-for-10, struck out five times and saw his average plummet from .389 to .217.

Not that the Astros were having a great time at the plate themselves. It was Bob Aspromonte, the guy who got the lone RBI, who struggled most - going 0-for-9 with two strikeouts. All the other Astro starters besides Wilson got at least one hit in the contest and light-hitting shortstop Hector Torres actually had three.

Houston was having their own troubles at the plate. Once the 23rd inning ended scorelessly, the Astros had run their streak to 35 straight innings without a run. They had been blanked by Nolan Ryan and Danny Frisella on a five-hitter the night before.

That streak almost ended much earlier when Hal King had the most impressive hit of the night, a double high off the center field fence in the second inning that just missed going out for a home run. He would later be cut down at the plate on a throw by Ken Boswell. King, a reserve catcher, would suffer by staying behind the plate for the entire 24-inning marathon. His catching opponent, former Colt Jerry Grote, also caught all 24 frames.

By the end, not only King and Grote were weary. The announced Monday Night crowd of 14,219 had dwindled down to a few thousand by Tuesday morning. Perhaps a few thought they'd file their income taxes as soon as the game ended and wound up leaving early as the game pressed on. In the radio booth, Loel Passe announced that the grill in the press area would begin offering breakfast shortly.

Scoreboard in 20th inning

Norm Miller was on his own personal 0-for-14 skid when he greeted Mets reliever Les Rohr with a single to right that started the bottom of the 24th. A balk moved him to second and a grounder by Rusty Staub advanced him to third with only one out. Meanwhile, Jim Wynn and John Bateman received intentional walks to load the bases setting the stage for Aspromonte. On a 2-and-1 pitch, Aspro sent a sharp roller to Al Weis at shortstop. Whether it was fatigue or anticipating a double play to get out of the jam, Weis didn't stay down and the ball rolled between his legs into left field as Miller came across the plate to win the game.

It was 1:37 a.m. at the Dome as the scoreboard lost none of its enthusiasm declaring the victory. The game took six hours and six minutes to reach a decision. For Weis, who played the entire contest, there were no excuses.

"I just plain blew it," said the Met infielder.

It had been a long night for one other Astro who wasn't even in the building. Pitcher Tom Dukes had been recalled from the minors before the game when Mike Cuellar was put on the disabled list. He was told to arrive in Houston the next day. His Oklahoma City squad was playing in Nashville so Dukes packed his belongings and spent the day driving from Tennessee to Dallas. He picked up the local broadcast of the game and, when it went into extra innings, decided he might be needed. He took the highway from Dallas to Houston and was within 50 miles of the Astrodome when Miller finally came across the plate to end the game.

Box score

Houston Astros 1, New York Mets 0 Game Played on Monday, April 15, 1968 (N) at Astrodome NY N 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 11 1 HOU N 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 1 11 1 BATTING New York Mets AB R H RBI BB SO PO A Weis ss 9 0 1 0 1 1 2 8 Boswell 2b 10 0 1 0 0 3 3 6 Agee cf 10 0 0 0 0 4 9 0 Swoboda rf 10 0 0 0 0 5 6 0 Shamsky lf 4 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 Jones pr,lf 6 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 Kranepool 1b 8 0 2 0 1 0 25 2 Buchek 3b 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 Charles 3b 6 0 1 0 1 1 2 4 Grote c 7 0 2 0 1 1 19 2 Seaver p 3 0 1 0 1 1 1 2 Taylor p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Linz ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Koonce p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Short p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Selma p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Bosch ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Jackson p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Harrelson ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Frisella p 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Cardwell ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Rohr p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Totals 79 0 11 0 5 20 70 30 FIELDING - DP: 1. E: Weis (1). BATTING - 2B: Charles (1,off Ray). SH: Buchek (1,off Wilson); Grote (1,off Ray); Kranepool (2,off Ray); Cardwell (1,off Blasingame). IBB: Grote (2,by Wilson); Charles (1,by Ray). Team LOB: 16. BASERUNNING - SB: Charles (2,2nd base off Ray/King); Jones (1,3rd base off Ray/King). Houston Astros AB R H RBI BB SO PO A Davis cf 10 0 1 0 0 3 6 0 Miller rf 8 1 1 0 1 2 6 0 Wynn lf 8 0 1 0 2 2 1 0 Staub 1b 9 0 2 0 1 0 23 5 King c 9 0 1 0 0 2 19 1 Bateman ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Aspromonte 3b 9 0 0 1 1 2 1 3 Gotay 2b 9 0 2 0 0 1 10 4 Torres ss 8 0 3 0 1 1 3 8 Wilson p 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 Thomas ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Buzhardt p 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Rader ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Coombs p 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Murrell ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ray p 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 Blasingame p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Totals 79 1 11 1 7 15 72 26 FIELDING - DP: 1. E: Wilson (1). BATTING - 2B: King (1,off Seaver). SH: Miller (1,off Koonce). IBB: Wynn 2 (2,by Short,by Rohr); Aspromonte (3,by Rohr); Bateman (1,by Rohr). Team LOB: 16. BASERUNNING - CS: Gotay (1,2nd base by Frisella/Grote); Miller (1,2nd base by Frisella/Grote). PITCHING New York Mets IP H R ER BB SO HR Seaver 10 2 0 0 0 3 0 Taylor 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 Koonce 0.1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Short 1 1 0 0 2 1 0 Selma 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jackson 3 1 0 0 0 4 0 Frisella 5 4 0 0 1 4 0 Rohr L(0-1) 2.1 1 1 1 4 2 0 Totals 23.1 11 1 1 7 15 0 Houston Astros IP H R ER BB SO HR Wilson 9 5 0 0 3 5 0 Buzhardt 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 Coombs 2 3 0 0 0 2 0 Ray 7 2 0 0 1 11 0 Blasingame W(1-0) 4 1 0 0 1 1 0 Totals 24 11 0 0 5 20 0 WP: Seaver (1), Rohr (1), Wilson (2). BK: Rohr (1). IBB: Short (1,Wynn); Rohr 3 (3,Aspromonte,Wynn,Bateman); Wilson (1,Grote); Ray (1,Charles). Umpires: Ed Sudol, Lee Weyer, Bill Williams, Tom Gorman Time of Game: 6:06 Attendance: 14219

Play by Play

Starting Lineups: New York Mets Houston Astros 1. Weis ss Davis cf 2. Boswell 2b Miller rf 3. Agee cf Wynn lf 4. Swoboda rf Staub 1b 5. Shamsky lf King c 6. Kranepool 1b Aspromonte 3b 7. Buchek 3b Gotay 2b 8. Grote c Torres ss 9. Seaver p Wilson p METS 1ST: Weis grounded out (shortstop to first); Boswell flied to center; Agee grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 1ST: Davis popped to pitcher; Miller flied to right; Wynn grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 2ND: Swoboda flied to right; Shamsky flied to right; Kranepool singled to center; Buchek forced Kranepool (shortstop to second); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 2ND: Staub flied to right; King doubled to left; Seaver threw a wild pitch [King to third]; Aspromonte reached on a fielder's choice [King out at home (second to catcher)]; Gotay popped to catcher in foul territory; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 3RD: Grote popped to second; Seaver struck out; Weis walked; Boswell struck out but Weis advanced to second and Boswell advanced to first on a wild pitch; Agee flied to right; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 3RD: Torres grounded out (third to first); Wilson grounded out (pitcher to first); Davis flied to center; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 4TH: Swoboda popped to first; Shamsky singled to right; Shamsky was picked off first but was safe on an error by Wilson [Shamsky to second]; Kranepool lined to center; Buchek grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 1 H, 1 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 4TH: Miller flied to center; Wynn grounded out (second to first); Staub grounded out (third to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 5TH: Grote lined to left; Seaver singled to right; Weis popped to third; Boswell grounded out (second to first); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 5TH: King grounded out (pitcher to first); Aspromonte flied to right; Gotay grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 6TH: Agee struck out; Swoboda struck out; Shamsky popped to shortstop; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 6TH: Torres grounded out (third to first); Wilson grounded out (shortstop to first); Davis struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 7TH: Kranepool singled to left; Buchek out on a sacrifice bunt (pitcher to first) [Kranepool to second]; Grote flied to center; Seaver walked; Weis grounded out (first unassisted); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 7TH: CHARLES REPLACED BUCHEK (PLAYING 3B); Miller struck out; Wynn struck out; Staub flied to center; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 8TH: Boswell grounded out (first to pitcher); Agee popped to second; Swoboda struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 8TH: King made an out to left; Aspromonte popped to catcher; Gotay flied to center; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 9TH: Shamsky singled to right; JONES RAN FOR SHAMSKY; Kranepool forced Jones (third to shortstop); Charles grounded out (third to first) [Kranepool to second]; Grote was walked intentionally; Seaver grounded out (pitcher to first); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 9TH: JONES STAYED IN GAME (PLAYING LF); Torres grounded out (third to first); THOMAS BATTED FOR WILSON; Thomas popped to third; Davis popped to third; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 10TH: BUZHARDT REPLACED THOMAS (PITCHING); Weis popped to shortstop; Boswell flied to center; Agee grounded out (catcher to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 10TH: Miller grounded out (second to first); Wynn flied to center; Staub singled to right; King forced Staub (first to shortstop); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 11TH: Swoboda struck out; Jones grounded out (first unassisted); Kranepool grounded out (first to pitcher); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 11TH: TAYLOR REPLACED SEAVER (PITCHING); Aspromonte struck out; Gotay grounded out (shortstop to first); Torres singled to center; RADER BATTED FOR BUZHARDT; Rader flied to right; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 12TH: COOMBS REPLACED RADER (PITCHING); Charles struck out; Grote singled to center; LINZ BATTED FOR TAYLOR; Linz popped to second; Weis singled to left [Grote to second]; Boswell singled [Grote to third, Weis to second]; Agee grounded out (second to first); 0 R, 3 H, 0 E, 3 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 12TH: KOONCE REPLACED LINZ (PITCHING); Davis singled to center; Miller out on a sacrifice bunt (first to second) [Davis to second]; SHORT REPLACED KOONCE (PITCHING); Wynn was walked intentionally; Staub popped to catcher in foul territory; King struck out; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 13TH: Swoboda flied to center; Jones struck out; Kranepool grounded out (first to pitcher); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 13TH: Aspromonte grounded out (pitcher to first); Gotay singled to center; Torres walked [Gotay to second]; MURRELL BATTED FOR COOMBS; SELMA REPLACED SHORT (PITCHING); Murrell flied to right; Davis popped to second; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 14TH: RAY REPLACED MURRELL (PITCHING); Charles grounded out (pitcher to first); Grote flied to right; BOSCH BATTED FOR SELMA; Bosch struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 14TH: JACKSON REPLACED BOSCH (PITCHING); Miller grounded out (shortstop to first); Wynn grounded out (third to first); Staub grounded out (pitcher to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 15TH: Weis was called out on strikes; Boswell grounded out (first unassisted); Agee struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 15TH: King struck out; Aspromonte struck out; Gotay grounded out (third to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 16TH: Swoboda flied to center; Jones grounded out (shortstop to first); Kranepool popped to second; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 16TH: On a bunt Torres singled to third; On a bunt Ray struck out; Davis struck out; Miller flied to center; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 17TH: Charles doubled to left; Grote out on a sacrifice bunt (first to second) [Charles to third]; HARRELSON BATTED FOR JACKSON; On a bunt Harrelson struck out; Weis grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 17TH: FRISELLA REPLACED HARRELSON (PITCHING); Wynn flied to left; Staub flied to center; King grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 18TH: Boswell struck out; Agee was called out on strikes; Swoboda struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 18TH: Aspromonte grounded out (third to first); Gotay grounded out (second to first); Torres singled; Ray struck out; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 19TH: Jones singled; Kranepool out on a sacrifice bunt (first to second) [Jones to second]; Charles was walked intentionally; Jones stole third and Charles stole second; Grote struck out; Frisella struck out; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 19TH: Davis struck out; Miller struck out; Wynn singled to left; Staub singled to left [Wynn to second]; King flied to right; 0 R, 2 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 20TH: Weis grounded out (second to first); Boswell struck out; Agee struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 20TH: Aspromonte grounded out (shortstop to first); Gotay singled; Torres struck out while Gotay was caught stealing second (catcher to shortstop); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 21ST: BLASINGAME REPLACED RAY (PITCHING); Swoboda struck out; Jones popped to second; Kranepool grounded out (shortstop to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 21ST: Blasingame grounded out (second to first); Davis popped to pitcher; Miller walked; Miller was caught stealing second (catcher to second); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 22ND: Charles grounded out (pitcher to first); Grote singled to left; CARDWELL BATTED FOR FRISELLA; Cardwell out on a sacrifice bunt (pitcher to second) [Grote to second]; Weis grounded out (third to first); 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 22ND: ROHR REPLACED CARDWELL (PITCHING); Wynn struck out; Staub walked; Rohr threw a wild pitch [Staub to second]; King grounded out (shortstop to first) [Staub to third]; Aspromonte was walked intentionally; Gotay struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 2 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 23RD: Boswell lined to first; Agee grounded out (first unassisted); Swoboda flied to right; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 23RD: Torres grounded out (pitcher to first); Blasingame flied to center; Davis flied to center; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. METS 24TH: Jones flied to right; Kranepool walked; Charles grounded into a double play (shortstop to second to first) [Kranepool out at second]; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 0. ASTROS 24TH: Miller singled to right; Rohr balked [Miller to second]; Wynn was walked intentionally; Staub grounded out (second to first) [Miller to third, Wynn to second]; BATEMAN BATTED FOR KING; Bateman was walked intentionally; Aspromonte reached on an error by Weis [Miller scored (RBI), Wynn to third, Bateman to second]; 1 R, 1 H, 1 E, 3 LOB. Mets 0, Astros 1. Final Totals R H E LOB Mets 0 11 1 16 Astros 1 11 1 16

Game data courtesy of Retrosheet