On May 15, 1918, the Washington Senators defeated the Chicago White Sox, 1–0, at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. in an undeniably impressive pitching duel. Despite recording eighteen innings, the contest only lasted 2 hours and 47 minutes as Walter Johnson and Lefty Williams both went the distance in this game. Washington won the game in the bottom of the 18th, when Eddie Ainsworth scored the winning run on a wild pitch.
And now guys can’t go 100 pitches. And certainly can’t sustain excellence for 2 hours and 47 minutes.
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i figure they were pacers and didn’t come out throwing 100 mph in the first inning because there’s no reason why in such a short span, human arms would lose their toughness.