You ever sit down to watch a quick October baseball game and end up still on the couch when the sun starts coming up? That’s basically the postseason experience in a nutshell. Baseball doesn’t have a clock, and when the stakes are high, the game can stretch into something that feels less like a sport and more like a test of human endurance.
If you're looking for the longest major league baseball playoff game, you’re actually looking at a five-way tie for the most innings played. Five different games have ground their way through 18 innings. But if we’re talking about the clock—the actual time spent sitting in those plastic stadium seats—one game stands alone as the ultimate marathon.
The 18-Inning Wall
It’s kinda weird, honestly. No MLB playoff game has ever gone to the 19th inning. We’ve had a handful hit 18, and then, almost like there’s a secret rule nobody told us about, someone finally hits a home run or a tired reliever throws a wild pitch to end the misery.
The most recent one happened just last year. On October 27, 2025, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers decided that nine innings of World Series baseball simply weren't enough. They played two full games' worth of baseball in one night. Shohei Ohtani was doing Ohtani things, reaching base nine times, but the game stayed locked until Freddie Freeman finally ended it with a walk-off blast in the 18th.
That game was a beast, lasting 6 hours and 39 minutes. Even with the pitch clock in place, you can’t speed up a game where nobody can buy a hit for ten straight innings.
The All-Time Time Record: Dodgers vs. Red Sox (2018)
While several games share the 18-inning crown, Game 3 of the 2018 World Series is the king of time. This thing lasted 7 hours and 20 minutes.
Think about that.
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You could fly from New York to London in the time it took the Dodgers and Red Sox to finish one game. It started on a Friday night and ended in the early hours of Saturday morning. Nathan Eovaldi, pitching on basically no rest, threw six incredible innings of relief for Boston, only to lose on a Max Muncy walk-off home run. It was heartbreaking for Red Sox fans, but legendary for everyone else.
By the end, the teams had used 46 different players and thrown 561 pitches. The concession stands had long since run out of hot dogs.
When 1-0 Takes Six Hours
Then there’s the 2022 ALDS between the Houston Astros and the Seattle Mariners. This one was different. Usually, long games have a bit of scoring. Not this time.
This was the longest 1-0 game in the history of the sport, regular season or playoffs.
For 17 innings, nobody scored. Not a single run. The Mariners were back in the playoffs for the first time in two decades, the crowd in Seattle was electric, and then... silence. For six hours and 22 minutes. Finally, rookie Jeremy Peña hit a solo shot in the top of the 18th.
The Astros' bullpen was a machine that night. Eight different pitchers combined for 18 scoreless innings. It wasn't exactly "exciting" in the traditional sense—it was more like a slow-motion car crash where everyone survives but is very, very tired.
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The 2014 NLDS: Giants vs. Nationals
We can't forget the San Francisco Giants and the Washington Nationals. This 2014 classic also went 18 innings, lasting 6 hours and 23 minutes.
The Nationals were one out away from winning in the 9th inning. Jordan Zimmermann was dealing. Then, he walked a batter, got pulled, and Pablo Sandoval immediately doubled in the tying run.
The next nine innings were just a blur of relief pitchers and failed bunts. Brandon Belt finally broke the tie with a home run in the 18th. It ended after midnight, on Nationals pitcher Tanner Roark’s birthday. Talk about a bad gift.
Why Do These Games Go So Long?
You’ve probably noticed a pattern: these marathons almost always happen in the Division Series or the World Series. Why? Because in the postseason, managers don't "save" players for tomorrow.
In a regular-season game in May, a manager might let a position player pitch just to get the game over with. In October? You use every single arm in that bullpen until they literally can’t lift their shoulders.
Also, the "Ghost Runner" rule (starting a runner on second base in extra innings) doesn't exist in the playoffs. You have to earn your way on base. This leads to those long stretches of zeroes on the scoreboard because playoff pitching is just that good.
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Comparing the Giants of the Game
| Game | Date | Innings | Total Time | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Sox @ Dodgers | Oct 26, 2018 | 18 | 7:20 | LAD 3, BOS 2 |
| Blue Jays @ Dodgers | Oct 27, 2025 | 18 | 6:39 | LAD 6, TOR 5 |
| Giants @ Nationals | Oct 4, 2014 | 18 | 6:23 | SF 2, WSH 1 |
| Astros @ Mariners | Oct 15, 2022 | 18 | 6:22 | HOU 1, SEA 0 |
| Braves @ Astros | Oct 9, 2005 | 18 | 5:50 | HOU 7, ATL 6 |
The 2005 game is the "fastest" of the bunch, mostly because it was played in a different era of the game where hitters were a bit more aggressive and the pace wasn't quite as glacial. Chris Burke ended that one with a walk-off, sending the Astros to the NLCS.
The Human Toll of an 18-Inning Game
Watching these games is exhausting. Playing in them is a nightmare.
Catchers are the real heroes here. Imagine squatting for seven hours while taking foul tips off your mask. By inning 14, everyone’s legs are like jelly. You see hitters taking wild hacks just hoping to end the game so they can go get some sleep.
And for the fans? If you’re at the stadium, you’ve probably spent a mortgage payment on beer and peanuts by the 12th inning. By the 15th, you’re just staying out of spite. You’ve invested too much time to leave now.
What to Watch For Next Time
Next time you see a playoff game headed into the 12th or 13th inning, keep an eye on the bullpens.
- The "Long Man": Look for the starter who isn't scheduled to pitch for three days. He's usually the one who has to come in and "eat" innings.
- Bench Depth: Watch how managers use their last few pinch hitters. Once the bench is empty, you might see a pitcher hitting for himself—or worse, playing the outfield.
- The Velocity Drop: By the 17th inning, even the best relievers start losing a few miles per hour on their fastball. That’s usually when the walk-off home run happens.
The longest major league baseball playoff game isn't just a stat; it’s a story of survival. Whether it's the 2018 Dodgers marathon or the 2025 Blue Jays thriller, these games remind us that in baseball, you’re never truly out of it until the very last out—even if that out takes seven hours to find.
If you want to dive deeper into baseball history, check out the official MLB film archives for the 2018 World Series. Seeing Nathan Eovaldi’s performance in context really shows why that game is considered one of the greatest ever played, despite the loss. You can also look up the Stathead databases to see the pitch-by-pitch breakdown of these marathons if you really want to nerd out on the numbers.