Analyzing the “42” Trailer Far Too Closely

While certainly there is plenty to talk about today, whether it’s the Pirates’ crazy player development “training” or the whole thing about Melky Cabrera, but instead, I’m going to be putting a spotlight on something else: a movie trailer.

The trailer, to be more specific, for 42.  As the title and the fact you are on a baseball blog suggests, it is a movie about Jackie Robinson. It has a good pedigree, written (and directed) by Oscar-winning screenwriter Brian Helgeland, and with Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey. Emmy nominee Christopher Meloni plays Leo Durocher. Somewhat wisely, Robinson himself will be played an unknown names named Chadwick Boseman, who’s previous roles have been on TV and an appearance as Floyd Little in the Ernie Davis biopic, The Express. A good move, really, as I worry that if a “star” were to be playing Robinson, it would overtake the story of Jackie Robinson. Let me put it another way: If Will Smith were 15-20 years younger and was cast in this movie, people would be watching the movie thinking about Will Smith, not Jackie Robinson. And that would not be a good thing.

Anyway, here’s the trailer. After it (and the jump), my thoughts:

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Bizarre Baseball Culture Theater: The Time Mark Wahlberg Shot Derek Jeter

From the 2010 comedy The Other Guys:

The Marlins go early and Ozzie gets some final naughty-words in during the final episode of the 2012 edition of “The Franchise”

So, it is done. The Franchise on the Miami Marlins is done. Much like, it should be noted, the Marlins’ playoff hopes. This was why it has ended early, only going seven episodes instead of the originally planned eight. Showtime and MLB Productions were having a hard time making the Marlins interesting as they fell deeper and deeper into the basement, so they basically just threw up their hands and said “screw it”. The result is a final episode where the documentarians basically throw in every prepacked bit they hadn’t included already, focus somewhat on the future of the Marlins, and with heavy doses of what might have been. Oh, and Ozzie Guillen swears. Of course.

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Ozzie Guillen is silent, Jose Reyes’ streak ends, and Eritrea comes into play in the 6th episode of “The Franchise”

First off, let me show you the “Carlin Word” count for Wednesday’s episode of The Franchise for Ozzie Guillen:

(this space intentionally left blank)
…..

There weren’t any. The total number of times he’s used a swear word on The Franchise remains at 105. On average, Ozzie Guillen swears about once every two minutes.

So, there you go, people-only-here-to-read-about-Ozzie-Guillen-language. Now, everyone else, go after the jump to read my observations

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Episode 5 of The Franchise is Wives’ Day

Episode 5 of The Franchise (Miami Marlins edition) is definitely different from the previous episodes. For one thing, by now everybody knows, in the aftermath of the trade deadline, that this team isn’t going to be the paradigm-shifting one that Jeff Loria had hoped it would be for Miami baseball. The opening title sequence, which once had people talking about how this was going to be the Marlins team that was going to go against the best of the best and change everything, now has more reflective quotes about how it hasn’t gone so well and they are trying to fix things. For another, this episode is focused heavily not on the players, but rather their wives. Go below the jump for more, as well as this week’s Ozzie Guillen counter.

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Ozzie Guillen doesn’t show up that much as the Trade Deadline dominates in the 4th episode of “The Franchise”

This week’s episode of The Franchise focused on the Trade Deadline, primarily focusing on the front office, the players being traded, and the players being traded for.

Go after the jump for thoughts and the weekly count of Ozzie Guillen’s foul mouth.

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The fire sale begins and family takes center stage in the oddly low-swearing third episode of “The Franchise”

It’s time again for the Miami Marlins’ edition of The FranchiseLast time, I noted that there was no reference to Ozzie Guillen’s feud with Bryce Harper over the amount of pin-tar on his bat. Well, that basically opens up this episode. After that, though, it becomes focused on two things: the beginning of the latest fire sale as the Marlins continue to fall out of it, and families. More after the jump, including the latest installment of the “Ozzie Guillen ‘Carlin Words’ Counter”:

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The Second Episode of 2012’s “The Franchise” saw Ozzie Guillen say the F-Word about 18 times, and other observations

The second episode of this season of The Franchise wasn’t as long or as good as the first, but it still entertained while providing a unique look at the Miami Marlins, focusing primarily on Giancarlo Stanton’s surgery, Logan Morrison’s trip back to his hometown of Kansas City, and the unexpected rise of Justin Ruggiano, but still getting in some good Ozzie Guillen sounds before the end, as he chewed out the team immediately following the All-Star Break. Thoughts and the “Ozzie Guillen ‘Carlin Words’ Counter” after the jump:

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Review and observations of the first episode of the 2012 edition of the Franchise (and the debut of the “Ozzie Guillen ‘Carlin Word’ Counter”)

The first real episode of The Franchise aired on Wednesday night (a preview episode aired earlier in the year, and this episode recycled some of the material from that). While last year they dealt with the relatively-boring San Francisco Giants, this season, Showtime and MLB Productions are following the Miami Marlins, a far more hectic and colorful club. This episode- which covers roughly the first half of the season- features a bit on the team’s off-season makeover, the opening of the new stadium, Ozzie’s infamous comments about Fidel Castro, and the setting-up of certain players and storylines that will probably be followed throughout the season. It’s a good show, perhaps only failing in not sticking with the Castro incident longer (it was covered far more in the preview episode, if I remember), but make sure no young children are around while watching.

More after the jump (and SPOILERS), including the first installment of the Ozzie Guillen “Carlin Word” Counter:

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An act of unnecessary baseball research: Miguel Tejada and Aaron Sorkin

During the pilot episode of Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom (a good show, if a little soapboxy), newsman Will McAvoy is reminiscing with his old flame/new executive producer MacKenzie McHale and remembers that he once went to an Orioles game with her father, which ended with Miguel Tejada hitting a double to win the game 4-3, driving home runners who were on first and third.

However, either McAvoy’s memory isn’t as sharp as he’d like to believe, or the universe of The Newsroom isn’t just different because there is a fictional news network around… because no such thing ever happened. From 2004 (when Tejada joined the Orioles) to 2007 (it’s said the two of them haven’t seen each other in three years, so presumably that’s the latest such a game could have happened), Tejada didn’t hit any walk-off doubles for the Orioles.

However, just for the sake of argument, here are some possibilities of what he actually was talking about:

The only time that Miguel Tejada ever had a walk-off double with men on first and third was when he was with the Athletics. Given the fact that McAvoy so clearly remembers it being an Orioles game, and the fact that all of these characters appear to be based on the East Coast, he probably didn’t mean that.

He hit a walk-off home run against the Tigers in 2004, but the men were on 1st and 2nd, it ended the game by the score of 7-5, and, let’s face it, it’s hard to believe somebody would think it was a double.

Personally, I think it was likely this game from August 2006. The Orioles, like in the game remembered by McAvoy, won by one. Two men were on when he had the hit (a single). It’s entirely possible that, in the madness that so often follows a walk-off hit, that McAvoy would think that Tejada had gone to second. As for all of the other inconsistencies in McAvoy’s memories, well, he mentions that he and Mackenzie’s father had been drinking a lot that day, so, well, there you go.

So, there you go, the answer to a baseball question nobody asked.