The 100 Inning Game is an annual charity fundraising event that raises money for
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...
(ALS) research. It was founded by the
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
Men's Baseball League, the largest amateur baseball league in New England, in 2004.
Each year, over one hundred players from the Boston Men's Baseball League and other teams from the surrounding area get together in the spring to play a full 100 consecutive innings of baseball. It often takes about 36 hours to complete.
Curt Schilling
Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball right handed pitcher and commentator for media outlet BlazeTV. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a World Series appearance in 1993 World Seri ...
's wife makes an annual appearance at the charity event, even playing a few innings on occasion.
History
The beginning
The 100 Inning Game was first conceived in February 2004 by Brett Rudy and Mike Lembo, both members of the Boston Men's Baseball League. Through e-mail communication, the two developed the idea behind the charity event, which was to create a game that would coincide with the arrival of the newly acquired Boston Red Sox pitcher,
Curt Schilling
Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball right handed pitcher and commentator for media outlet BlazeTV. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a World Series appearance in 1993 World Seri ...
, and which would support his charitable organization, Curt's Pitch for ALS.
A meeting between Brett, Mike, and the ALS Association MA Chapter ensued and a deal was quickly struck to get things underway. After some convincing to the City of Boston's Department of Conservation and Recreation a permit was issued to use Kelly Field in Hyde Park for the inaugural game - marking the first time the City of Boston had ever granted permission for an all night event to take place. A date of April 17 and 18 was decided upon; the dates are also '
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...
Weekend'.
That first year, the players had raised over $113,000. The game was played by 180 players and took over 36 hours to complete. A check was presented by the game organizers to Curt Schilling on the field at Fenway Park later that year.
Since 2005
The 2005 edition of the 100 Inning Game was played at the
Campanelli Stadium in
Brockton, Massachusetts
Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 105,643 at the 2020 United States census. Along with Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth, it is one of the two county seats of Plymouth County, Massachusetts, ...
, and was hosted by the
Brockton Rox. That year, the event collected even larger funds, with over $113,000 raised and presented to the charity by year's end.
The following year, the event was played at the
Hanover Insurance Park at Fitton Field
Hanover Insurance Park at Fitton Field is a baseball stadium in Worcester, Massachusetts. Primarily used for College of the Holy Cross sporting events, the baseball stadium also served as the home field for the Can-Am League Worcester Tornadoes ...
stadium, located at the
College of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by educators Benedict Joseph Fenwick and Thomas F. Mulledy in 1843 under the auspices of the Society of Jesus. ...
in
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engl ...
,
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
, the home of the
Can-Am
The Canadian-American Challenge Cup, or Can-Am, was an SCCA/ CASC sports car racing series from 1966 to 1974, and again from 1977 to 1987.
The Can-Am rules were deliberately simple and placed few limits on the entries. This led to a wide variet ...
professional league
Worcester Tornadoes
The Worcester Tornadoes were a professional baseball team based in Worcester, Massachusetts, in the United States. The Tornadoes were a member of the Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, an independent baseball league which ...
. This year brought in an additional $85,000 to the charity, making the three-year total of the 100 Inning Game $310,000 donated to Curt's Pitch for ALS.
The 2008 game was held on August 30 and 31 at Adams Field in Quincy, marking a change in date. The game also removed the "Dirty Dozen", the 12 people who could participate all 100 Innings.
See also
*
ALS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, terminal neurodegenerative disorder that results in the progressive loss of both upper and low ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
100 Inning Game Homepage
Baseball in Boston
Annual events in Boston
Recurring sporting events established in 2004
2004 establishments in Massachusetts