A down-and-out baseball team's fortunes are lifted by a mysterious but seemingly unbeatable young player.A down-and-out baseball team's fortunes are lifted by a mysterious but seemingly unbeatable young player.A down-and-out baseball team's fortunes are lifted by a mysterious but seemingly unbeatable young player.
- Directors
- Writer
- Rod Serling(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaPaul Douglas, who had drinking habits, was originally cast to play McGarry but onstage began to look red and read raspingly, and it wasn't until his coronary-related death days after the episode was completed that it was realized he had been suffering poor health rather than reaction to drink. Because the episode was supposed to be a comedy, Rod Serling was reluctant to let it be broadcast with Douglas' impending death essentially captured on film. When CBS refused to pay for the episode to be re-shot, Serling personally underwrote the $27,000 it cost to have Jack Warden brought in to replace Douglas and to have some scenes re-done with Warden in place of Douglas.
- GoofsDuring the locker room scene (17 minutes on) the wall clock never changes from 1:45.
- Quotes
Rod Serling - Narrator: [Closing Narration] Once upon a time, there was a major league baseball team called the Hoboken Zephyrs, who, during the last year of their existence, wound up in last place and shortly thererafter wound up in oblivion. There's a rumor, unsubstantiated, of course, that a manager named McGarry took them to the West Coast and wound up with several pennants and a couple of world championships. This team had a pitching staff that made history. Of course, none of them smiled very much, but it happens to be a fact that they pitched like nothing human. And if you're interested as to where these gentlemen came from, you might check under 'B' for Baseball - in The Twilight Zone.
- ConnectionsEdited into Twilight-Tober-Zone: The Mighty Casey (2021)
A rather tragic episode whose attempt at whimsy doesn't come off despite winning performance by gangly Robert Sorrells as the genial robot. Apparently the production was almost wrapped when the star Paul Douglas suddenly died. As a result, much had to be reshot on a hurry-up schedule using Jack Warden. And it shows. As reviewer Mulrooney points out, the direction is "merciless", to say the least. Sorry to say, an inferior entry.
Interesting to compare current steroid scandal in major league baseball with premise of this show. Whereas robotic Sorrells has to become more "human' to stay in the league, some major leaguers now work at an edge by becoming more bionic. Ironically, the Mighty Casey's process is being reversed by today's homerun sluggers chasing the big bucks whatever the human cost. Although the episode may stand as an artistic bust, it does remain oddly topical.
- dougdoepke
- Jun 18, 2006
Details
- Runtime25 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1