Small Talk: Conference on the Mound

[Meredith Quill]

The Small Talk topic is for:

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Happy trails beyond Small Talk!

[CabotCove]

MLB Superstar Jose Fernandez Killed in Boating Accident

http://variety.com/2016/tv/spotlight/jose-fernandez-dead-boat-accident-miami-marlins-1201869922/

Unbelievably tragic. 

Just to think a few days ago I was watching this guy on TV. 

[Raja]

Three episodes in and I feel like Ricky Henderson. I still have not picked up on the names. Just "the manager" the all star catcher", "the pitching coach", the agent.

[Raja]

I have long had this theory that baseball was the perfect sport for the radio era and was supplanted as the national pastime with televised sports as football and basketball changed their games to make them TV friendly. The slower pace and one on one confrontations during the  games does seem to be a better backdrop for a drama series. However the practice scenes of the other team sports seem to add more drama

[jhlipton]

On 10/7/2016 at 9:09 AM, Raja said:

Three episodes in and I feel like Ricky Henderson. I still have not picked up on the names. Just "the manager" the all star catcher", "the pitching coach", the agent.

Oscar (or Al), Livan Duarte, Buck, Amelia (I have trouble with her name, for some reason).

Oscar is the General Manager and Al is the Head Coach (or whatever he's called in baseball).

Edited December 7, 2016 by jhlipton
Oscar and Al

[Moose135]

Speaking of who's who, what ever happened to Bob Balaban's character?  He was team president/managing partner, and I know he had the scuffle over firing Al, but suddenly the Billy-Bean-wannabe shows up, without another word.

[ProudMary]

4 hours ago, jhlipton said:

Oscar (or Al), Livan Duarte, Buck, Amelia (I have trouble with her name, for some reason).

Oscar is the General Manager and Al is the Head Coach (or whatever he's called in baseball).

Manager.

[Irlandesa]

2 hours ago, Moose135 said:

Speaking of who's who, what ever happened to Bob Balaban's character?  He was team president/managing partner, and I know he had the scuffle over firing Al, but suddenly the Billy-Bean-wannabe shows up, without another word.

It was implied that he was fired--over Al I think. 

[ahisma]

3 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

It was implied that he was fired--over Al I think. 

Yes. The team is owned by a group of wealthy investors, one of whom stays in SD and takes on the day-to-day owner duties. The guy who was performing owner duties wanted to fire Al because Al had been putting his foot in his mouth over Ginny (e.g., calling her a pretty girl rather than a talented player). And he stuck by that decision, willing to go down over it. The primary investor booted him and replaced him with the stats guy, because firing Al would have created backlash over Ginny being treated "special" as a female player—the organization valuing her over the manager. (And it would have been terrible for her in the clubhouse.)

[paulvdb]

14 hours ago, jhlipton said:

Oscar (or Al), Livan Duarte, Buck, Amelia (I have trouble with her name, for some reason).

Oscar is the General Manager and Al is the Head Coach (or whatever he's called in baseball).

The all star catcher is Mike Lawson (played by Mark Paul Gosselaar). Livan Duarte is the new Cuban catcher.

[jhlipton]

13 hours ago, ahisma said:

Yes. The team is owned by a group of wealthy investors, one of whom stays in SD and takes on the day-to-day owner duties. The guy who was performing owner duties wanted to fire Al because Al had been putting his foot in his mouth over Ginny (e.g., calling her a pretty girl rather than a talented player). And he stuck by that decision, willing to go down over it. The primary investor booted him and replaced him with the stats guy, because firing Al would have created backlash over Ginny being treated "special" as a female player—the organization valuing her over the manager. (And it would have been terrible for her in the clubhouse.)

Al did some schmoozing with the primary investor that convinced her that she needed Al more than she needed the "CEO".  

"Al may have been kicked off the field, but he certainly kept himself busy. He met with team owner Maxine Armstrong (Wendie Malick) and told her that if he's fired, it'll look like Ginny demanded it because of his remarks about her looks. The team, the league, and the fans will call her a coach killer. Instead, Al suggests he should finish out the season then he'll retire. "

http://www.vulture.com/2016/10/pitch-recap-season-1-episode-3.html ("A Woman’s Gotta Have a Code")

 

10 hours ago, paulvdb said:

The all star catcher is Mike Lawson (played by Mark Paul Gosselaar). Livan Duarte is the new Cuban catcher.

I wasn't sure if the reference was to to Mike or to Livan (who is hot enough that all the teams wanted him).