Summary
A League of Their Own’s pilot is an expertly produced setup for a promising series.
A League of Their Own Season 1 Episode 1 opens with a woman in a blue floral dress, wearing a proper hat, gloves, and with a single piece of luggage in her hand, trying to catch a train. The locomotive has not left yet, but the horn is sounding that can be heard all over Idaho. A couple stops her. A woman is standing with her husband, dressed in a military uniform, and his right arm is in a sling. It’s the middle of World War 2, and the man is home.
The woman, kind of stupidly, asks if she is coming to the picnic and reminds her to bring the pie. Why would she ask her if she is trying to catch a train? Either way, Ms. Carson Shaw (Abbi Jacobsen) promises to bring them even though she jumps on that charcoal-guzzling vehicle headed to Chicago a moment later.
A League of Their Own Season 1 Episode 1 Recap
Carson will try out for the Girl’s Professional Baseball Team (GPBL). When she arrives in the big city, she meets Greta Gill (D’Arcy Carden) and Jo De Luca (Melanie Field). They are also trying out, and Carson tags along with them. Carson, a catcher, makes an impression quickly as she catches a foul ball outside the field and a few feet into the stands. All in front of two businessmen operating the league and the media.
The latter is concerned about women acting like men on the baseball field, not the proper ladies society taught them to be. One of those men is Marshall (Nathan Faxon), most likely inspired by Philip Wrigley, the man with a vision of the GBPL. The other is Morris Baker (Kevin Dunn), who worried many wouldn’t pay to watch women play. They need revenues since the war has taken all their male players. That night we find out Carson left home even though her boyfriend sent a letter that he would return soon.
You will notice all the baseball players are white. Even though it is all women, that doesn’t mean it’s inclusive. That’s when Max Chapman and her best friend, an aspiring comic book artist, Clance (Gbemisola lkumelo). Max, encouraged by her father, wants to try out for the GPBL. However, when she approaches the field, three white men tell her she is not allowed to do so. Max, defiant, demands to try out over Clance’s objections and tells her they should go home. Then, Max grabs a baseball and throws it from the outfield and into the stands. She has an arm that most male major leaguers would envy. So, they will give her a shot, right? Nope, they deny her talent because of the color of her skin.
A League of Their Own Season 1 Episode 1 Ending
The next day, we find out that Carson, Greta, and Jo all make the Rockford Peaches squad. They celebrate that night, and all five women cross paths at a local bar. Max and Clance meet her boyfriend in the kitchen, but Max becomes upset when she finds out a waiter is getting a baseball tryout. She cools down in the back area. While this is going on, Jo is dancing her version of the jitterbug while Greta and Carson have a heart-to-heart. Greta puts her hand on hers. Jo gives them a jealous look in her direction. Greta takes Carson to the back, where Max is cooling off, and kisses Carson, not realizing she is there. However, she does not pull away, and the girl from Idaho kisses her back. Greta leaves, and Carson then sees Max come out of hiding. She saw the whole thing.
The show ends with Greta leaving with a man in a military uniform even though Carson suggests she doesn’t go with a man she just met. When she turns around, Max is there again in the alley.
Carsons says she is the girl who was at the tryout. Max says yes but walks away.
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