The Cubs Beat the Phillies 26-23 in the Highest-Scoring Game in History

On August 25, 1922, the Chicago Cubs defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 26-23 at Cubs Park, combining for 49 runs in the highest-scoring game in major league history. The two teams produced 51 total hits, committed a fistful of errors, and somehow finished the entire spectacle in three hours and one minute.

The Cubs built a commanding lead early. They scored 10 runs in the second inning and 14 in the fourth, putting up crooked numbers that seemed to belong to a sandlot game rather than professional baseball. By the middle innings, Chicago led 25-6, and the contest appeared to be settled.

It was not. The Phillies mounted one of the most determined comeback attempts in baseball history. They scored eight runs in the eighth inning and six more in the ninth, cutting the deficit from 17 runs to three. The Cubs held on, but barely. Philadelphia left the bases loaded in the final frame, the tying run standing at first base when the last out was recorded.

The game featured individual performances that matched its absurd final score. Cy Williams, the Phillies' slugger, had already hit for the cycle three days earlier and continued his offensive tear. Cubs outfielder Marty Callaghan had multiple hits in the barrage. Nearly every player in both lineups contributed to the scoring.

Pitching was an afterthought. Both teams churned through arms as the runs piled up. The Phillies used four pitchers. The Cubs used three. None of them had any success for any sustained stretch. Balls flew to every corner of Cubs Park, which would be renamed Wrigley Field four years later.

The 49 combined runs remain the record for a single major league game more than a century later. Several games have approached it, but none have matched the offensive carnival that unfolded on the North Side of Chicago that August afternoon. The final score reads like a typographical error, but it happened, and the box score proves it.