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 This article about the reality series Baseball, Minnesota
was
originally published in
San
Francisco Giants Magazine.
The essence of baseball—where anything can happen—is
the stuff of many great stories and movies, but very few good TV shows.
For one thing, the unpredictability of the game is incompatible with the
nature of television (where spontaneity is always carefully planned).
You can't recreate a moment like Kevin Mitchell's barehanded catch
without making it look contrived. And
players in sitcoms like Hardball and Ball Four usually come across as caricatures.
The one show that captures the rhythm of the game is the
only one that’s not scripted: FX's weekly “baseball-umentary,” Baseball,
Minnesota. A camera crew
followed an actual minor league team, the St. Paul Saints, everywhere during the
1996 season. Game-day highlights
are woven into the individual stories of the Saints players.
Zoom in on pitcher Daryl Henderson as he awaits the results
of his MRI. Two years out of
baseball, the former Rangers prospect who had never had arm trouble now finds
his comeback threatened. Moments
later, manager Marty Scott delivers the verdict: a torn elbow ligament.
Even with surgery, Henderson will never throw again.
“You're awfully calm,” says Scott to the young
southpaw. “Tell me what you're
thinking.”
Henderson shakes his head, mutters, “Nothin' much,” and
stares at his feet. It's a part of
the game we all know exists but have never seen.
The moment is powerful.
In
subplots, former Major Leaguers Darryl Strawberry, Jack Morris, and Glenn Davis
hope for one last ticket to the Show; a trio of young Saints shop for furniture;
and the parents of a journeyman outfielder rejoice as he nears a home run record
("Some have more talent than Kevin, but none have more desire”).
Actor Bill Murray, the team's co-owner, performs wacky stunts—like
launching the Opening Day first pitch into the stands.
It is the manager, Scott, who holds the team together.
He grows close to ex-Giant Strawberry, “though I knew his stay would
not be long” (Strawberry re-signs with the Yankees), and truly aches for
Henderson that fateful day. Watching
Scott gives you an idea of the agonies and ecstasies Dusty Baker must experience
each season.
All of this might seem corny were it dramatized.
But the back stories in Baseball, Minnesota are engrossing because the players are
real—they’ve been personalized. The
concept of “following the team” has a whole new meaning.
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Ed
Robertson's articles appear in
MediaLifeMagazine.com,
The Wave Magazine,
Bell TV Magazine,
TV Party.com,
Television Chronicles,
Reel Talk,
San
Franciso Giants Magazine,
and the British magazine
Calafia,
as well as media venues like
Columbia
House,
the world’s largest direct marketer
of music, DVDs and videos.
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