Mets' Eric Young Jr. Associated Press

The New York Mets beat the San Francisco Giants 4-3 in 16 innings on Monday night. Just 85 games into the season, it's a surprise that the Mets players haven't asked for overtime pay. It was the team's 11th extra-inning game and the fourth time this season they have played a 15+ inning game. The single-season record for 15+ inning games is five, most recently accomplished by the 1980 Chicago Cubs.


Mets manager Terry Collins recently noted the physical toll playing so many extra-inning games has taken on his team, and entering Tuesday's game, the Mets are only 2-8 in games following an extra-inning affair. The 40 extra innings the team has played however, is still well behind the 1969 Minnesota Twins, who hold the all-time record of 76 extra innings.

But is the Mets' tendency to give fans "free baseball" a blessing or a curse?

As of Tuesday, the Mets had a .442 winning percentage, while the average winning percentage of the 12 teams since 1920 that played the most extra innings is .477. The 1969 Twins won the AL West with a 97-65 record, while the 1945 Philadelphia Athletics, who played 71 extra innings, finished the season 52-98.

So it appears playing all these bonus innings isn't the only reason the Mets are lagging in fourth place in the NL East, but it certainly has resulted in less sleep for the Amazins' diehard fans.

—Kevin Trahan