Baseball History: Fastest Professional Game Takes 32 Minutes

Worried about the pace of play in baseball? Then we should take a look back to this day in 1910 in baseball history, when a nine inning game was played in 32 minutes.

These days, one of the biggest stories in baseball is the pace of play. Different ideas have been proposed and/or enacted, from eliminating the intentional walk to instituting a pitch clock. It is a subject that has proven divisive amongst baseball fans, with purists feeling that the game is fine as is, and others wanting the league to do something to eliminate the three hour marathons.

Well, if Major League Baseball is serious about improving the pace of play, they could take a look back in baseball history. On this day in 1910, the Mobile Seagulls and Atlanta Crackers played a game in less time than it takes some fans to find their seats. The entire game took 32 minutes to play, a contest of speed instead of endurance.

To hasten the tempo, the teams sprinted off the field between innings. Players typically swung at the first pitch, attempting to put the ball in play. And yet, in the Seagulls 2-1 victory, there was a walk and four stolen bases.

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It was certainly an interesting experiment. The entire game took place in roughly the same amount of time as the average sitcom episode. Or, given the pace of play these days, the same amount of time as half an inning between the Red Sox and Yankees.

Of course, some of those ideas will be difficult to implement these days. It is difficult to imagine players like Pablo Sandoval or Bartolo Colon sprinting anywhere without needing an oxygen mask. Swinging at the first pitch of every at bat only happens if Alcides Escobar steps to the plate. And forget all of those elaborate rituals during at bats or on the mound. The game would certainly be faster, and without the need of a pitch clock.

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If Rob Manfred and Major League Baseball want to speed up the game, there are ways to do so. All they need to do is look back in baseball history, and the game between the Mobile Seagulls and the Atlanta Crackers.