NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. – From first pitch last Thursday at 8 a.m., to the final out at noon on Monday, dozens of baseball players rewrote the record book at Macken Park.
The Endless Game Foundation broke the record for longest marathon baseball game in history with 100 hours and one minute of nonstop action, smashing the previous record of 83 hours and 13 minutes.
“Slow and steady wins the race. That’s the only way you get to the end,” player Hershel Davis said of the marathon game.
“But the big thing is raising the money we were after.”
Two teams made up of roughly 60 players battled head-to-head to make history. During the five-day game, the Endless Game Foundation raised money for seven charities, including: Operation Breakthrough, Children’s Mercy Hospital, Gift of Life, Veterans Community Project, C You in the Major Leagues, North Kansas City Parks and Recreation and the North Kansas City Animal Shelter.
The two teams of 30 rotated in shifts. The foundation also had 50 scorekeepers and 75 umpires.
Team Courage’s 468 runs bested Team Strength’s 307, but the event was truly a victory for everyone involved.
“Last night when we broke the record it was a great feeling,” player Victoria Ressler said. “Everybody was out here, and I think it was just a great community moment.”
The foundation is continuing to raise money through an online auction that ends at 10 a.m. on Thursday, September 7.