One City, Three Games
So we know the New York Mets hosted a rain-out inspired doubleheader starting at 12:10 on April 13, 1997, and the New York Yankees hosted their own weather-induced twin bill beginning at 1:30 the same day.
We are also advised – thanks to research Buster Olney did for the New York Times back in ’97 – that the last year that the Dodgers, Giants, and Yanks shared New York there were no fewer than eight dueling doubleheaders.
And we know that on September 1, 1890, during the last desperate month of the worst year in baseball history – the season the players walked out on the owners of the two established leagues to found their own circuit (with disastrous attendance consequences) – the National League Brooklyn Bridegrooms pulled a harrowing stunt – a triple header against Pittsburgh (and they swept them).
But we do not know is when New York fans (or fans in anybother multi-team city) were last afforded the chance they are given today. The Mets began their doubleheader against the Rockies at 12:12 and have vaguely scheduled the nightcap fir 3:40 PM. The Yankees have their night game against Baltimore scheduled in the Bronx for about 7:10. With the slothfulness of play these days, to
say nothing of rush hour traffic, it seems unlikely anybody could see
all nine innings of all three games – but you can get pretty close.
And it surely will be your last chance for awhile!
Baseball Nerd 
Great World, KO
Dear KO, Just found out that you have a baseball blog- someone sent me your great Lotto Nation clip on the FOK News Network, then I went to wikipedia to see what else you’ve been up to since the Countdown and was thrilled to find that you support people with multiple myeloma- one of my close friends has that cancer. He is due to be honored, along with 8 other cancer survivors, by the Giants in a Strike Out Cancer Day, i’m 80% sure the day will be July 24.
You must be in baseball hog heaven today, enjoy your tripleheader! 🙂
You must be in baseball hog heaven today; enjoy your triple header! 🙂
Hey Bella, Keith will go down in the Baseball Hog of Fame! I’d love to see one Yankees game before I die…in person…not just on TV. Also, folks can do like my dad did to catch multiple games…sports page on lap…earphone in ear and game on TV. Po man’s triple! Wheeee! (“Take me out to the ballgame” plays out.)
Never seen three in one day, but I did see two games in one day in two cities in 2005. Reds – Nats day game at RFK Stadium, Angels – Orioles night game at Camden Yards, then caught the Reds – Pirates game the next night at PNC Park on the way back to Ohio. Saw Griffey Jr hit one out two days in a row.
Keith, don’t know if you are tracking Mr. Hayhurst’s work at durham. He went six innings and got the win the other day… are they trying him as a starter ?
I once watched a twi-night double header at Candlestick Park. I had to be treated for hypothermia afterwards.
NYC traffic jams is why they built the subways.
Hmmm, it’s still way early in the season, but I see the Yanks are 9 and 5 and the Bosox are 4 and 10…
I wonder if Giardi showed that picture of you schmoozing with Franconen in the locker room along with your predictions…
I hope so…
How about the Mets having to play back-to-back doubleheaders? Two on Thursday and two on Saturday. You don’t see that too often. Your post reminds me of the Sammy Davis Jr. song “New York’s My Home”: “It’s a city where a man can fulfill his dreams/The only town that’s left that’s got three baseball teams.” Obviously recorded pre-1958.
I once saw 2 Rangers game on the same day…Yanks vs. Rangers on Opening Day at the Stadium; Rangers vs. my favorite hockey team (whoever’s visiting 🙂 that evening.
I could think of nothing better to do with a week day. You probably had to take a shower after the Mets game. I know watching the Mets makes me feel kinda yucky.
I belong to a club of Central Illinois baseball fans called “The Raccoons”. We would check Sox and Cub schedules for the rare days that both teams would be in town on the same day, get tickets and enjoy a day game at Wrigley, dinner at The Berghoff, and then on to the Southside to watch my beloved Pale Hose. One year we were lucky enough to catch a rain-out double header between the Cubs and Pirates then see the Sox vs, A’s. What a day!!!
Last SCHEDULED doubleheader at Fenway Park. Red Sox v. Senators, July 4, 1969. It was one of six doubleheaders that day (Yankees hosted one Pirates, Giants, White Sox and Royals did too). I was there, got to see Frank Howard take BP at Fenway Park, an utterly awesome display, and he hit his 28th homer that day, in the 82nd day of the non-steroidal season.
The next year, 1970, there was one Independence Day doubleheader, and that was at Wrigley where the nightcap had to be over by 8 p.m. or so. July 4th was, however a Saturday that year, 1971, a Sunday, no July 4 twin bills; weekday Independence days then returned with three double headers in 1972, two in ’73, ’74, ’75, four on Bicentennial Day in 1976; then two in ’77 and ’78 and then none in 1978, but Pittsburgh and New York resumed the practice by each hosting doubleheaders in 1979 (those two cities had kept up the tradition through the 70s) and 1980, there was a strike in 1981, Pit and NY resumed in 82; but in 83 the Yanks had Boston in and went with one game, but Pittsburgh and Wrigley each had a doubleheader, but there the Pirate and N.Y. home team tradition ended.
it was S.F. only in 84 and finally not a single Independence Day doubleheader in 1985 (although the Braves and Mets did manage to play 19 innings of 16-13, 6 hour 10 minute, 46 base hit, 47 LOB baseball in which Ron Darling should have been credited, just on general principal, with what would have been his only major league save).
The next July 4 doubleheader wasn’t until the Mets played 2 in 1992, but even there, it looks like the previous day was a rainout; the Cubs hosted two in 1999, the Giants in 2001; the Indians in 2005 which is the last independence day doubleheader scheduled, and one of only two this century and 6 since 1990.
1960 may have been the last year of every team scheduling a July 4th doubleheader, although Yankees only played one in Washington, but the schedule that year had all the teams scheduled for a one-day, two-game series on July 4, but the Senators and Yanks played one on the 4th and one on the 5th, so I suspect there may have been a Game 2 rainout. Granted, this was still the Griffin era, so he may well have tried to stretch the series to a second admission, but Washington tallying 20,000 paid on Tuesday July 5 makes me think that 16,000 of those admissions were the people with rainchecks from the second game of the Monday July 4 doubleheader. The last year when every club actually played two on Independence Day was 1958, they were pretty consistent on weekday holidays through the 60s.
As for Canada Day, or Dominion Day, as it used to be called, Le Jour de la ConfĂ©dĂ©ration, The Expos played 2 on July 2 71, 78 and 82, and had a night-before twilight/night (in Marty Glickman’s term) in 73 and 77, and the Jays played two the day after in 77 and 87 and two on Canada Day in 1978, the only time there was an MLB doubleheader on Canada’s national holiday during a Tory government..
The last year when every club actually played two on Independence Day was 1958, they were pretty consistent on weekday holidays through the 60s.
As for Canada Day, or Dominion Day, as it used to be called, Le Jour de la Confédération, The Expos played 2 on July 2 71, 78 and 82, and had a night-before twilight/night (in Marty Glickman’s term) in 73 and 77, and the Jays played two the day after in 77 and 87 and two on Canada Day in 1978, the only time there was an MLB doubleheader on Canada’s national holiday during a Tory government..