A lot happened at this year's Summer Games Done Quick speedrunning showcase. But none of them could top this one: peanut butter, the speedrunning dog who appeared at Summer Games Done Quick last night, baffled me until I realized that he was literally a dog, but Ken Griffey Junior Presents Major League Baseball's "game-winning" speedrun, which ended with a walk-off home run in extra innings.

SGDQ had warned in advance that access would be restricted once this particular run began to ensure the "most comfortable environment," but knowing that the speedrunner in question was actually Shiba Inu, who completed a gyromite run at Awesome Games Done Quick in January that makes a lot of sense. This puppy is not without precedent.

Can a dog play baseball" I can only assume that someone has looked into this and decided that there is no rule that says he can't. But he needs a little help: peanut butter uses a controller modified for the job, which is basically a big button (made to look like a baseball, naturally) that PB slaps according to his speedrunning partner JSR_'s guide. In other words, it's not conventional gameplay in the strictest sense, but on the other hand, Peanut Butter doesn't have thumbs or an evolved prefrontal cortex. All in all, it is a fair balance.

You probably won't be surprised to hear that it was packed:

The game was tied at one early on, but a baserunning error allowed one out, but two more runs in the sixth inning gave them the lead.

But it wasn't over: Minnesota tied the game, 3-1, going into extra innings. Then, in the bottom of the 12th, Peanut Butter hit a rope down the right field line to score the winning run with one out. But a small ball to bring back a runner was not in the plan: the next batter, namely Griffey Jr. himself. Peanut Butter hit a monster shot over the left field wall, scoring two runs and winning the game 5-3 with a bases-loaded sweep.

Needless to say, the crowd went wild.

The time of 29:48 was well short of the 21:22 Peanut Butter had recorded in January. Still, everyone agreed that this very good boy was the hero of the day. 'So proud of this dog,' JSR_ tweeted after the run." This is the best moment in both of our lives. What a doggie."

Peanut Butter even got a sign on the wall.

This is obviously a highlight, but it's not the only big thing that happened at this year's SGDQ; Games Done Quick also announced yesterday that the amount raised for charity by the GDQ event surpassed $50 million. And there's still plenty to see: the Summer Games Done runs through July 7 and will feature speedruns of games such as Metal Gear Solid 4, Levelhead, Baldur's Gate 3, and Elden Ring.

Peanut Butter's SGDQ 2024 speedrun can be viewed below: