TBG21 - The Twilight Zone's "The Mighty Casey"

Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde delve into all the twists and turns surrounding this baseball-themed episode of "The Twilight Zone" entitled "The Mighty Casey!" Rating this 1960 TV episode on the 20-80 scouting scale may make for one of their most fun journeys yet. They introduce the episode (1:34), with an overview of the plot, actors, and a brief foray into Rod Serling's other writing about baseball. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (8:18), they begin with Amount of Baseball (9:22), including a discussion of whether or not Amount of Baseball is a ratio stat or a counting stat, Robert Sorrell's pitching double, and the concept of a montage expressing "he's doing well." Baseball Accuracy (13:04) touches on how much adding one pitcher could really help an awful team, Casey's pitching mix, how often a superman could plausibly pitch, connection to the Dodgers, the try-out flubs and a philosophical question about beaning. Storytelling (36:22) examines the fairytale nature of the story, the twists, Casey's mental fortitude with small shout-outs to Cliff Lee and Max Scherzer, Leo Durocher and the question of whether nice guys finish last, concerns about Dr. Stillman's motivations, Casey's age and implications for his Tommy John surgery. They discuss the Score (47:25) and Acting (48:35), particularly Robert Sorrells, Abraham Sofaer and Jack Warden, with our CRAZIEST TWIST YET! References to "Homeland," "Inception," and Ellen's final request. Plus, Robert Sorrells was a complex dude. Delightfulness of Catcher (56:59), Delightfulness of Announcer (59:23) and Lack of Misogyny (1:00:35) follow. No spoilers on the following segments: Yes or No (1:04:58), Six Degrees of Baseball (1:09:30) Favorite Moment (1:10:25) Least Favorite Moment (1:11:18), Scene We Would Have Liked to See (1:13:37), Dreamiest Player (1:15:47), Favorite Performance (1:16:22), Review Thank You (1:18:35) and Next Time (1:19:10).   Join: PL+ | PL ProProud member of the Pitcher List Podcast Network