Pitch Season 1 Episode 3 Review: Double Switch
Jasmine Blu
at
.
The Padres were kicking ass and taking names! Literally.
With episodes like Beanball (formerly known as Double Switch) Pitch may make a baseball fan out of me yet!
Pitch Season 1 Episode 3 gave us more background on Ginny via flashbacks and better insight into Al, Oscar, and Frank. There was slick backroom scheming, a hookup, a brawl, an unexpected bromance, hilarious one liners, and loads of sports action!
There isn't much to complain about. It was the strongest episode so far, of a show that just keeps getting better!
Let's get that hookup out of the way, shall we?
I like Amelia and Mike individually. Hell, I don't even mind the two of them together. I can see why the two of them would be drawn together. They both have their fair share of baggage and are a bit, emotionally damaged, for lack of a better word.
But the drawback is that it's going to be messy. The two people closest to Ginny, hooking up and not telling her that they're hooking up? It just feels awkward and cringe-worthy already.
Amelia: Hey um, just confirming, we can't-
Mike: Relax, I'm not gonna say anything, although I don't know why, we're both single and consenting. Ginny's a big girl.
Amelia: She still carries your rookie card and had your poster on her wall.
Mike: Really? She had me on her wall?
Despite what Amelia was implying (also way to break the girl code with that one) I don't think the issue will be that Ginny still has a crush on Mike. I think the issue will be that, Amelia at her most endearing and most annoying tends to parent Ginny and it's not cool.
She has a horrible habit of treating Ginny like a child instead of like a grown woman capable of making her own decisions and knowing what's best for herself. Amelia undermines Ginny. It's not malicious and her intentions are pure and well but it's still an issue she has to work on.
Mere hours after hooking up with Mike, and she already tried to rope him into policing Ginny for all the wrong reasons. Mike is Ginny's teammate and partner. Sure he's her idol and mentor, but he's also becoming a close friend and it's not fair for Amelia to use her new relationship with Mike to change the relationship that Mike has with Ginny.
I believe that's what will be the worst thing about this weird Amelia, Mike, Ginny triangle. The two closest people to Ginny can't not affect her relationship with each of them, and it's going to be really messy and not in a good way. It'll be interesting to watch though.
Evelyn: She doesn't date ballplayers.
Trevor: Well she struck me out three times tonight. Clearly I'm no ballplayer.
Ginny: You trying to strike out a fourth time?
I loved that while whatever burgeoning relationship between Amelia and Mike was dominating the present, we got to see Ginny in her own relationship in the past.
I think it was really great and really important to show the romantic, enamored side of Ginny too. She's more than just a "robot in cleats." Via those flashbacks we got to see a fun and flirty side to Ginny that we aren't necessarily afforded in the locker room.
Oh Trevor! In theory I liked the idea of the two of them, but honestly I could not get past the fact that he didn't understand her reservations and her rules until two years later.
I believe he genuinely cared for her (and still does), but it is easy to understand why Ginny would feel as if he told her all the things she wanted to hear just so he could get laid. He didn't respect her wishes enough to be honest with her upfront.
Were you really going to quit the game?
Ginny
Ginny had rules for a reason! Trevor misleading her into believing that he was giving up baseball, and then getting upset with her because she didn't want to go public about their relationship while he was still playing was unfair.
It was a sign that he didn't understand nor respect why she had these type of rules to begin with. He regarded them as something fickle that would change, and as her being too careful or too paranoid, as if she was somehow imagining or exaggerating the type of backlash she'd face from dating him.
Sure enough we got flashback Ginny being harassed in a locker room not too long after it came out. It was difficult to really like or appreciate Trevor, because even though he came across as "a nice guy" he was just another person who behaved as if he knew better than she did.
Trevor: I got notification that my passwords were changed.
Ginny: So?
Trevor: So I got hacked. They gained access to my banking information, credit card info, and pictures. Selfies that we took on the road.
Ginny: You told me you deleted those!
And now we have that cliche new development that made me cringe. Is it safe to say that those hacked pictures were of the dirty variety? I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they're going to go down this route, but I'd rather they not. Jeebus!
I respect that present day Trevor not only gave her a head's up. *cough* eventually*cough* But also gave her a piece of advice to let somebody in, because the media crapstorm that she has to endure is not something she can do alone.
Trevor reminded her that she needs a person. And that reminded me that Ginny really doesn't have anyone. Her father is gone, we still haven't seen much about her mother, or her brother in the present. She has her agent, her agent's assistant, and two teammates.
As much as I love the Ginny and Mike bromance, I do wish we could see Ginny interact with other people her own age. Preferably another woman. Someone who isn't caught up in the baseball world.
Ginny: You asked for a fastball, I threw a fastball.
Mike: The way it works is, you hit their pitcher-
Ginny: They get to hit me. I know the code.
The beanball war is the type of sports content I am here for! I was so glad they finally got back into the thick of things with some sports action. We haven't seen much of it since the Pitch premiere.
If possible, how Ginny handled the feud made me love her even more. The thing about being on a team, is you don't have to like the person who is on it with you, and they don't have to like you, but you look out for them.
It's kind of like family. So the second we found out that the Cardinals were the team who played dirty, and that Falcone was the one behind deliberately taking Tommy out, I knew payback was inevitable.
Ginny was like a pitbull and the guys didn't seem to know how to handle it!
Ginny: Any other pitcher on this team, you would have told them to knock Falcone on his ass.
Mike: Fair enough.
Ginny: And don't tell me you wouldn't have.
Mike: Hey! I just said you were right, Baker. Geez!
I get both sides of it. Ginny doesn't want any special treatment. She's a ballplayer and wants to be treated and respected as such. I loved that she was not afraid to call out any and everyone who was guilty of treating her differently, whether it was Mike, Trevor, or The Mountain (loved that nickname by the way).
But the thing is, Who wants to be the guy who intentionally hits a woman with a ball? It comes across abusive and doesn't bode well. There are lines that just shouldn't be expected to be crossed and I can't think less of or scream sexism at a guy who doesn't want to get violent with a woman, even during a sport.
It doesn't change the fact that I enjoyed every single second of a riled of Ginny junk talking, and basically instigating a full blown brawl! I mean, Evelyn hollering at Blip to get in there had me laughing so hard I nearly cried.
Tommy: I guess you can come.
Ginny: Well, since you're begging me Tommy.
Plus it gave us an unexpected bonding moment and bromance.
Our Pitch Roundtable was just discussing whether or not Ginny would ever get along with her teammates. If her actions in this episode didn't endear the last of them to our girl, I don't think anything will.
I still think Tommy is a jackass and Ginny didn't need to earn his respect, because who the hell is he? But I enjoyed how the episode begin with him antagonizing her about that Drake situation and ended with him inviting her for a drink with the guys.
Tommy finally was able to see what we've seen from the beginning, which is Ginny is a badass! I loved all those subtle smirks, and appreciative looks of respect Tommy shot Ginny's way.
But I absolutely adored that the second Ginny shoved her opponent and he reacted, Tommy was the first one to go into brawl mode. He just needed a reason. I mean, who would have thought that Tommy and Ginny would be kicked off of a field together because of fighting?
The only thing better than that badass shot of them walking off the field together, was that fist bump! In that moment they reminded me of the Bash Brothers from The Mighty Ducks series. And yeah, the fact that I'm more familiar with the fictional movie Bash Brothers versus the MBA version with Jose Canseco/Mark McGwire, isn't lost on me.
This is my ballclub and I'm not willing to give it up! They're going to have to take it from me and I'm not going to let them.
Al you sly dog!
The real BAMF of the evening had to be Al! Honestly I didn't know he had it in him! He expertly played the game just right and I was cheering him on the entire time!
When he smoozed Maxine with that lovely smorgasbord and then "Olivia Poped" the hell out of her. I fist pumped the air. That was a solid argument about the optics of how his being fired after his faux pas, would look for the team and Ginny.
That's how you play! I love how this show not only addresses the sexism but also knows how to use it too. I mean it's reality, sometimes you can't fight it, sometimes the best thing you can do is use it to your advantage.
Al knew Ginny would face backlash, because it would look like she got him fired after his comments, and he knew they couldn't have that. I loved that he only asked that they give him the rest of the season to finish out and then let Buck have his chance to shine! He saved himself and looked out for his friend!
The fact that after all the time Oscar spent running around trying to find someone to fire Jin in his native tongue, and Al was able to do it himself, because he speaks freaking Korean was just icing on the cake! I love Al!
Frank can suck it! For now. My only issue is, it resolved itself so quickly that I'm wondering what could happen next? I mean is that it for all the dirty, backroom dealings? It was just starting to get interesting!
Mike: 16 years I've been playing in this town. I've seen a lot of rookies come and go. Never met one like you.
Ginny: Yeah, well-
Mike: Not because you're a girl. It's what you're doing. It's what you're having to deal with. You're kinda blowing me away.
The Mike and Ginny dynamic was in top form in this episode and as a fan of both of them, I really appreciated it. The banter was so on point. The old man jokes, the Duck Dynasty jokes, the jabs, teasing, and heartfelt moments. I really love the two of them!
The chemistry between Kylie Bunbury and Mark-Paul Gosselaar is like lightening in a bottle good. I could watch the two of them for hours. It's becoming clearer and clearer that Mike is being set up to be Ginny's "person" and maybe even vice versa,
That's why I'm wary about where Amelia comes in.I think a relationship, even a casual one, for Amelia could be great. I think she and Mike could have some hot chemistry.
But Mike is torn between his feelings for his wife and his hard to place infatuation with Ginny. Amelia would feel like a stand-in, which wouldn't be bad necessarily if she knew and didn't mind being a stand-in. She seems a little invested in him already.
So what did you guys think of the episode? Does anyone else think Eliot is being criminally underused? Did you appreciate the action? Do you think Ginny's pictures will get out? Were you rooting for Al too? What should we call the Amelia and Mike ship?
Hit up the comments below and tell us what you think! Don't forget you can watch Pitch online right here at TV Fanatic!
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
