FOX TV Show Pitch is Giving Baseball New Life
It was the first episode of Pitch that had me leery of the new show on FOX. It was something about it that didn’t sit well. Maybe it was the fact that we will probably never see a female MLB player or the fact they gave away the show’s biggest storyline in the first episode.
By the second week, the show began to make a turn. Pitch became more about baseball and the behind the scenes stuff that fans want to know. What really goes on in a clubhouse? How antsy does a player get when it’s a rain delay and how contracts are handled? These are questions I always asked my die-hard baseball fans. And thanks to Pitch I finally have the answers.
[embedit snippet=”2″]The show is still centered around Ginny Baker and her plight as the first female major league player but it’s so much more that at times you forget it’s a show and get caught up in the fantasy world.
The season finale “Don’t Say It” was brilliantly done. From the opening scene of Ginny going for a no-hitter to her cutting ties with her brother and manager. It was just orchestrated to perfection. As serious as baseball is, Pitch provides us with well-timed comedic moments as well.
The classic joke for the finale was when Mike Lawson and his manager were sitting in the office talking over why Mike didn’t go to the Chicago Cubs after waving his no trade clause. ” Like the Cubs will win the World Series” Instead of laughing at the joke they both just took a swig of their beers. The joke was subtle and right to the point. Only baseball fans would get that. But scenes like that are what makes the show so great.
Not just the jokes will pull you in. The baseball side that we see but never get to hear will leave a lasting effect on you as well. Example: Ginny was in the middle of a no-hitter and as she went back to the dugout, her teammates gave her the silent treatment which is a superstition among players when a pitcher is in the middle of an amazing feat. Ginny just gave a funny line as she was being shut out; “Really guys, we doing this”?.
Pitch is new, and who knows if FOX will pick it up for another season. But if baseball is looking for an outlet to reach more fans, Pitch is the way to go.
Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.
