Cardinals-Diamondbacks 19-inning game: 10 things you might've missed from the nearly seven-hour marathon
The game ended after 1:30 a.m. local time
Tuesday's game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and St. Louis Cardinals lasted six hours and 53 minutes. The 19-inning game was the longest contest by innings and time in Chase Field history. The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead into the ninth inning, but Arizona answered back in the ninth to send the game to extras. St. Louis re-took the lead in the 13th, but then the Diamondbacks answered again. Arizona would finally get the last laugh as the team broke the second tie of the game in the 19th inning on Ildemaro Vargas' walk-off single.
It's likely that most fans didn't manage to stay up to watch the entire marathon game, so we've got you covered.
Here are 10 things to know from the record-setting night:
1. Record number of players used
The Diamondbacks used a franchise-record 30 players. That's over three starting lineups of players. The Cardinals used 24 players, including 11 pitchers. Arizona ran out of position players and relievers in the 19th inning. All in all, there were 53 players used in the game, including 24 pitchers, who threw a total of 576 pitches.
2. Record number of strikeouts
The total number of strikeouts (48) in the game tied a league record. The Yankees and Cubs also combined for 48 strikeouts on May 7, 2017. Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty led all players with 11 strikeouts. The D-Backs' pitching staff notched 25 Ks and the Cards' finished with 23. It was only the second time in MLB history that each team recorded 21 or more strikeouts in a game.
3. More extras than regular innings
The game was 19-innings long. So, that means that the game had more extra innings (10) than it did regulation innings (9).
4. Cards snap six-game winning streak
Any extra-innings loss is a heartbreaker, but this one had some extra sting for the Cardinals. Prior to Tuesday's loss, the Cardinals had a six-game winning streak, but the loss kept their magic number to clinch the division at three.
5. Vargas was the hero... twice
D-Backs back-up second baseman Ildemaro Vargas not only tied the game in the ninth inning with a solo home run off reliever Andrew Miller, but he also had the game-winning hit, a two-out, bases-loaded walk-off single in the 19th inning. Vargas was not in the D-Backs' starting lineup, and he didn't get into the game until he pinch-hit in the ninth. He also became the first player since 1920 (when RBI became official) to drive in the game-tying run in the 9th inning and then have a walk-off RBI in the 19th inning or later.
6. Latest rookie walk-off in nearly 50 years
In his rookie season, Vargas set a record for the latest walk-off hit, in terms of innings, by a rookie since Angel Mangual of the Oakland A's drove in the only run of the game in the 20th inning on July 9, 1971, against the Angels.
7. Rojas made game-saving grab in 19th
D-Backs left fielder Josh Rojas robbed Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong of a single in the 19th inning. DeJong's hit went out deep to left and Rojas caught it as he slammed into the Diamondbacks' bullpen fence.
8. Goldy feels at home
This week's series is the first time Paul Goldschmidt returned to Arizona since he was traded to St. Louis this past offseason. In his first game back at Chase Field on Monday, he received a huge standing ovation from the crowd and in his second at-bat of the game, he hit a two-run homer. Goldy followed up Monday's homer with another one on Tuesday, a solo shot to put the Cards up 2-1 in the 13th inning. As we already know, that lead wouldn't last.
9. Flaherty flirted with a no-no
The fact that Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty had a no-hitter going deep into the game (well, in normal circumstances) gets lost. Flaherty took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and it was broken up when Eduardo Escobar reached first base on a bad-hop single. That would end up being the the only hit he allowed in the outing. Since the All-Star break, Flaherty is 6-2 with 0.97 ERA. This is the eighth time this season that Flaherty has had a no-hitter through at least four innings. That's the most such starts by any MLB pitcher in a single season in the last 40 years.
10. Sleep-deprived series finale
The turnaround from a mid-week, extra-innings game is never easy. If anything, it just simply throws players' routines out of whack. Tuesday's game started Tuesday night and didn't end until 1:35 a.m. MST Wednesday morning. That gives the players barely 11 hours in between the conclusion of Tuesday's game to their next game, the series finale set for 1:40 p.m. MST. Just take it from D-Backs' catcher Carson Kelly:
That feeling when you play a 7 hour game then have a 12:40 start the next day😴 #Game159 #Lockitin pic.twitter.com/VcoCOi2YeL
— Carson Kelly (@carskelly) September 25, 2019
And while the Diamondbacks were eliminated from postseason contention after Monday's loss to St. Louis, the Cardinals are still fighting to clinch the NL Central. Entering Wednesday, the Cards' division lead is down to 2 1/2 games over the Milwaukee Brewers.
















