Lights Out: Rocky Colavito

Detroit Slugger Goes 7-10 in a 22-Inning Game

When: June 24, 1962

Where:  Tiger Stadium, Detroit, Michigan

Game Time: 7:00

Attendance: 35,368

It started out like any other Yankees-Tigers match-up on a lazy Sunday afternoon. But after Tigers starter Frank Lary threw the first pitch to Yankee shortstop Tom Tresh, little did either team – or the 35,000 Tigers fans in attendance – know that the outcome was seven hours away.

Or that Detroit Tigers outfielder Rocky Colavito would put on an unforgettable hitting display in 22 innings of baseball.

Rocky Colavito
Tigers outfielder went 7 for 10
in 22-inning game against the Yankees

Lary had a reputation for being a “Yankee killer.” A 23-game winner in 1961, the Tigers ace struggled against the Yankee bats on this day, allowing 7 runs in the first 2 innings, all earned, including the 3-run homer Lary surrendered to Yankee third baseman Clete Boyer. The Tigers scored 3 runs of their own in the bottom of the third off Yankees starter Bob Turley with a 3-run homer off the bat of right fielder Purnal Goldy (it would be one-third of his career total).

The Tigers added 3 more runs in the bottom of the third off Jim Coates with an RBI single by shortstop Chico Fernandez and a 2-run double by catcher Mike Roarke. The Tigers tied the game at 7 in the bottom of the sixth. Colavito singled off Bill Stafford to score Bill Bruton. And that’s the way it stayed until inning 22.

In all that day (and into the evening), Colavito would hit 5 more singles, plus a triple, going 7-10 with a walk through 22 innings. Known primarily for his power (45 home runs and 140 RBIs in 1961), Colavito could also hit for contact. He collected 1,730 hits during his 14-year career.

Jim Bouton
Picked up the win in the 22-inning marathon.

Colavito’s performance went for naught in the win column. The slugfest of the first 6 innings turned into a relief pitching duel, as both teams were shut out for 15 consecutive innings. In the top of the twenty-second inning, Jack Reed’s 2-run homer off Phil Regan finally broke the scoreless streak. In the bottom half of that frame, Jim Bouton retired the first 2 Tigers before Colavito collected his sixth single of the game. But Bouton got Norm Cash to fly out to John Blanchard in left field to end the game. Colavito was stranded at first, one of 22 Tigers left on base in the course of that marathon loss.

Excerpt from Lights Out! Unforgettable Performances from Baseball’s Real Golden Age. http://bit.ly/Hwd774