PITCH [1×07] Review: “San Francisco”

Scandal, bobble-heads, and no mansplaining please!

We knew it’d come around the episode Trevor (Shamier Anderson) admitted he’d been hacked: Ginny’s (Kylie Bunbury) nudes would be released. Considering the global figure she’s become, it’s a big deal. Amelia (Ali Larter) tries her best to contain the situation in rigid cooperation with Oscar (Mark Consuelos):

Oscar: You’re right. Women are objectified in ways that men aren’t. But that’s our reality and this is gonna be a disaster for all of us.

Amelia: Thank you for mansplaining that to me! [Silence] …always wanted to use that word.

It’s a lot on the stakes for Mike (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) too as he finds his ailing body costing him his position as catcher to the Padres’ trip to San Francisco. Young Livan Duarte (Christian Ochoa) is skilled, fit and confident. Despite his difficult journey here, his arrogance antagonises the Padres.

As the clock ticks, Al (Dan Lauria) and Ginny bond in San Francisco and Oscar scolds Livan. Yes, Oscar has a fantastic eye for talent, but he’s not an idiot. Even though he’s a businessman first, he knows and values teamwork inside-out. Oscar tells it to him straight: he’s no Mike Lawson. A catcher isn’t just one to make a call, but a natural leader and motivator. More importantly, he sacrifices for the team. Mike sacrificed a lot for his mother when he was young. Now, he does the same for the Padres.

Meanwhile, it’s Amelia’s ingenuity that makes the hacker look like an idiot when Ginny does a naked photoshoot to embrace the power of her body. It’s even better when the boys join in, because as this has been the case all along, the Padres isn’t about Ginny. Nor Mike. Nor the rookie. It’s about the team.

Amelia’s marriage to her job becomes clear and it’s a darn good union.

This is by far Ali Larter’s best role for a long time. Always talented, always underrated, Larter shows her true colours in her pitch-perfect depiction of Amelia. She’s determined, ambitious and she won’t just tell it to your face—she’ll tear it off if she wants to. Never doubt Amelia.

We see her humorous, best-friend side; we see her cut-throat businesswoman side. Even with the same person—it’s best demonstrated in the scene with Ginny. We see a woman. Clever, loyal, conniving… Amelia shows us that it’s not just douches in fancy suits that can pull off a swindle or two. She sure as hell can.

And why’s that brilliant? Because she saved the plot at the end of the day. Ginny’s leaked nudes without any publicity stunt would’ve been a disaster. Even in the face of a furious Oscar, Amelia never backed down. She remains thankless and brilliant. She’s also got pretty much the best lines on the show. And she made that news anchor lady very happy when the team joined in with the nude photoshoot.

Nearly every episode it’s tempting to jot down “this was Amelia on top form” but she just keeps getting better. As long as ‘Pitch’ stays as good as it has been these past two episodes, we hope Amelia’s a permanent fixture.

Ginny and Al are learning from each other, just as Mike did from his coach when he was young.

Completely left-field but something we didn’t even know we desperately needed to see was Ginny’s relationship with Al blossoming. It was as beautiful as the San Fran skyline. You could feel it, couldn’t you? That sense of warmth in your chest as Al told Ginny to stop training and come out to see San Fran with him.

It may be the captain’s job to inspire the team on-field, and Oscar’s job to pull the strings behind-the-scenes, but it’s Al’s job to bring it all together. This was the real episode we got to see Al truly give some heart to his players; that he cared so much.

As well as Mike’s flashbacks worked in comparison to Livan’s rough childhood, it worked better in comparison to Ginny and Al. If part of what Mike’s excellent captaincy is down to is his childhood, and the coach who saw something in him, then it’s not so dissimilar to Ginny and Al.

This was and always will be about the Padres as a team, despite its shining stars. ‘San Francisco’ showed that despite Mike’s star-status, even he is replaceable.

This episode, of all of the episodes, opened our hearts to Mike. He’s always been the confident captain and the grizzly man all women love. But when you see him struggle with an injury that’s unavoidable, and when you see him being essentially replaced by a younger, clever rookie, it’s hurtful stuff. And when you see him at the end, when everyone reunites with their families and Mike is alone, you can’t help but feel sorry for him. When he sits in his lavish house, all alone, your heart clenches and it’s another good job from Mark-Paul Gosselaar.

What was great about this episode, though, was the fact that Ginny’s scandal had essentially brought the team together. And you get that sense between Mike and Livan when Mike congratulates him on a good roadtrip, and Oscar strictly reminds Livan that he has a long way to go before he’s anything like Mike.

There’s hope that Mike will mentor Livan just as he was mentored by his coach when he was young. Mike can’t be the catcher forever, but it doesn’t mean he has to leave the show, either. Admittedly , it would also be quite nice to see Mike consentingly handing over his legacy to Livan’s young hands. We’ve got a long way to go, but as Livan was given a reality check by Oscar in the parking lot, we don’t think Mike’s going anywhere soon.

Final Verdict: ‘Pitch’ is really hitting the ground running now, and surely it’s a guaranteed season two. There are its off-moments, but there’s nothing else like it on television.

I’m going to eat some humble pie.

There have been episodes of ‘Pitch’ where it just feels like ‘Ginny problem number one’, ‘Ginny problem number two’—but whilst you know that it would amount to something, the serialisation didn’t quite work. We’re on episode seven now, following up the best in number six, and it’s working. All these loose plot threads are coming together nicely. It’s bringing out the best in our feisty cast of characters. And even the flashbacks have improved. They’re adding to the story, rather than getting in the way.

‘San Francisco’ was probably the best balance of game-action and drama we got, and leaves us on the precipice of some long-asked questions, including the main one: where’s Mike’s career going? The writing’s getting zippier with each script (especially grin-inducing is Amelia’s stuff) but by far the hero of the series goes to the soundtrack. The violins, the—whatever else (I’m no musician)—builds the atmosphere beautifully. Way to go, ‘Pitch’.

Questions and Comments:

• In terms of Ginny’s nudes probably being a huge social media fiasco, shouldn’t, er, the Director of Social Media Eliot be here? (I.e. I really missed Tim Jo)
• Ginny’s nude photoshoot, following the likes of Serena Williams’, would’ve been powerful enough—but when the boys joined in it was a different story entirely. Ginny was still at the centre of everything, but the Padres’ support was genuinely touching.
• Mike scrolling through his contacts on his phone to ‘Baker’…hmm…
  • I’ve been pining for their unbreakable friendship for so long—do you think ‘Pitch’ will give it a romantic play? I can’t see it personally but I love their chemistry.
• Anyone else want an episode of Oscar and Amelia’s bobble-head conversation?
  • It’s been a consistent tug-of-war between Mark Consuelos and Ali Larter nearly every episode as to who was the scene-stealer, but I think Ali Larter gets it this time.
• As cliché as this will sound, and in all the cliché ways ‘Pitch’ has done it, I actually do think it’s empowerment of women—especially women of colour—has been top-class.

Catch more of ‘PITCH’ on FOX, Thursdays 8/9c!