Nope, not the Cub or Sox offense..



Tulowitzki vindicates self in 22nd inning
Shortstop drives in go-ahead run in longest game since '93
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com

SAN DIEGO -- Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki's long, hard night Thursday night morphed into a bright, cheery Friday morning.
Tulowitzki's two-out double in the top of the 22nd inning gave the Rockies a 2-1 victory over the Padres as the teams set a franchise record for the most innings in a game, and played for 6 hours, 16 minutes.

It began in front of 25,984 fans at PETCO Park and ended before a hearty few that stayed with the teams as they brought to life a saying Hall of Famer Ernie Banks only wishes he could have uttered: Let's play two-and-a-half!

Tulowitzki best exemplified what the game meant to the club, beyond the length-of-game numbers. In his first eight plate appearances, he was 0-for-6 to run his slump to 1-for-26 and didn't reach until he walked in the 18th.

Too tired and punchy to worry about his lack of success, he singled in the 20th -- well after midnight. He won the game with his hit off Glendon Rusch (0-1). It drove in Willy Taveras, who reached on a throwing error on Padres shortstop Khalil Greene and he then moved to third when he stole second and advanced on catcher Josh Bard's throwing error.

"For me to be relaxed right now, it's going to take a lot, and it pretty much took all 22 innings," said Tulowitzki, as happy as a guy with a .167 batting average can be. "Someone said I'm the best player there is today -- the only guy with two hits today."

The teams used 15 pitchers, who threw a combined 658 pitches in the longest Major League game since the Twins beat the Indians, 5-4, in 22 innings on Aug. 31, 1993. The Rockies' previous record was 18 innings on Aug. 15, 2006, a 2-1 loss to the Diamondbacks at Coors Field.

Taveras, who, along with Matt Holliday, led all players with three hits on a pitching-dominated night, set a Rockies record with 10 at-bats. On the not-so-bright side, the Rockies struck out a club-record 20 times. Brad Hawpe, who temporarily gave the team the lead by drawing a bases-loaded walk in the top of the 14th, absorbed four of those.

It sounds like the players went through a lot, but manager Clint Hurdle made it a point to make sure his players remembered to enjoy it. And if you're going to play this long and have to travel to Houston to begin a three-game series on Friday night, might as well win.

"The guys that had been grinding a little bit too hard, taking themselves a little too serious, this was a good game to get a little bit outside yourself," said Hurdle, whose squad won their first road series of the season. "I said in about the 16th inning, 'You know, boys, no matter what's in front of us, there's a whole world of people out there that have harder rows to hoe than we do.

"No matter what happens, have some fun with this."

Rockies reliever Kip Wells (1-0) was one of the last to have his fun, but he pitched the final four innings, struck out three, and overcame hitting Greene to lead off the 22nd by forcing a Bard double-play grounder.

"When you watch that many guys go into the game, you end up getting heckled by every last fan over why you're still not in the game," Wells said. "But it's good to be there when it's over and you're coming out on top."

It was fitting that the game ended with strong pitching, since that's how it began. Rockies starter Jeff Francis, who had struggled in his first two starts (0-2, 9.53 ERA), struck out seven and gave up three hits in seven scoreless innings. Padres ace Jake Peavy struck out 11 and held the Rockies to four hits, with three walks in eight innings.

"I feel like I made some good pitches with my fastball, I changed speeds off of it, and got them to swing over my changeup," Francis said. "For this team, it was a big win.

"Whatever I did four hours ago, I don't think it matters anymore."

Several relievers were notable. Ryan Speier threw a career-high three innings. The Padres' Wil Ledezma, who had pitched four innings all season, threw five and pitched out of several jams.

The Rockies' pitchers struck out 17 Padres overall, a team record. Each team also had some headaches.

After Hawpe drew the go-ahead walk from Kevin Cameron, Rockies closer Manuel Corpas suffered his second save in five chances -- but Tulowitzki helped save Corpas by catching a Paul McAnulty grounder and throwing to the plate to prevent the winning run.

The Padres blew a glorious chance in the 13th when third base coach Glenn Hoffman waved McAnulty to third to try to stretch his leadoff double, but Hawpe and second baseman Clint Barmes made on-the-money throws.

It added up to yet another memorable game in what is becoming quite a lively series between the clubs.

The last three times they've met, they had a 14-inning game last Sept. 21 that the Rockies won, 2-1, on Hawpe's homer; the crazy National League Wild Card tie-breaker that the Rockies won, 9-8, in 13 innings last Oct. 1; and the 22-inning game.

"What a game, man," Hawpe said. "I don't know. It was like a boxing match."

But not even the toughest of fighters wants to go 22 rounds.

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