Anybody remember Ball Four? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

rockwood · 11-03-2003, 01:43 AM

It was on for not even half a season before it got canceled in the mid 70's. The show was a half hour sitcom, which was supposed to re-enact some of the true situations from the book "Ball Four" authored by mediocre baseball pitcher Jim Bouton. The book was very good for its time, detailing a entire season's adventures diary style in 1969 when he pitched for the first year (and only year) expansion team, the Seattle Pilots.

The show was truly a piece of crap, however, and got canceled pretty quickly. It was not very funny, and full of cliches. I watched each episode and I remember that Ben Davidson was one of the cast along with Bouton himself.

It was merely a blip on the tv radar screen and disappeared without fanfare. I woudn't be surprised one bit if nobody has ever even heard of it.

Hey, Ritchie Blackmore lost his hat!--->

TVFactFan · 11-11-2003, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by rockwood
It was on for not even half a season before it got canceled in the mid 70's. The show was a half hour sitcom, which was supposed to re-enact some of the true situations from the book "Ball Four" authored by mediocre baseball pitcher Jim Bouton. The book was very good for its time, detailing a entire season's adventures diary style in 1969 when he pitched for the first year (and only year) expansion team, the Seattle Pilots.

The show was truly a piece of crap, however, and got canceled pretty quickly. It was not very funny, and full of cliches. I watched each episode and I remember that Ben Davidson was one of the cast along with Bouton himself.

It was merely a blip on the tv radar screen and disappeared without fanfare. I woudn't be surprised one bit if nobody has ever even heard of it.

Hey, Ritchie Blackmore lost his hat!--->

This show aired on CBS in 1976 and only lasted 4 weeks. I think it failed because it came on the same time as Bionic Woman which aired on ABC from 8-9pm. Bionic Women was a Hit at the time.

Brian · 11-11-2003, 09:39 PM

I have the book. I haven't finished it but it is really good from what I have read.

donald snl · 11-12-2003, 05:19 PM

im a big harry chapin fan and ive read he sang the theme song was that any good or was it as bad as the rest of the ep. you saw/ / /

major · 02-20-2004, 08:59 PM

Jim Bouton was a sports caster for CBS in New York at the time Ball Four was broadcast. Perhaps that is why the show was shown on the network. Bouton may have had some pull.

By the way, Bouton played a pitcher named Burton. His team was the Washington Americans.

One line I remember from the show comes from a scene where Barton is reading "Catcher in the Rye." A teammate asks him, "Who did he play for?"

11-03-2003, 01:43 AM	#1
rockwood Member First Time Poster Join Date: Nov 03, 2003 Location: Eastern USA Posts: 1	Anybody remember Ball Four? It was on for not even half a season before it got canceled in the mid 70's. The show was a half hour sitcom, which was supposed to re-enact some of the true situations from the book "Ball Four" authored by mediocre baseball pitcher Jim Bouton. The book was very good for its time, detailing a entire season's adventures diary style in 1969 when he pitched for the first year (and only year) expansion team, the Seattle Pilots. The show was truly a piece of crap, however, and got canceled pretty quickly. It was not very funny, and full of cliches. I watched each episode and I remember that Ben Davidson was one of the cast along with Bouton himself. It was merely a blip on the tv radar screen and disappeared without fanfare. I woudn't be surprised one bit if nobody has ever even heard of it. Hey, Ritchie Blackmore lost his hat!--->

11-11-2003, 09:39 PM	#3
Brian Member Forum Celebrity Join Date: Jun 23, 2001 Posts: 20,451	I have the book. I haven't finished it but it is really good from what I have read.

11-12-2003, 05:19 PM	#4
donald snl Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jul 06, 2003 Posts: 456	im a big harry chapin fan and ive read he sang the theme song was that any good or was it as bad as the rest of the ep. you saw/ / /

02-20-2004, 08:59 PM	#5
major Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Dec 26, 2001 Posts: 47	Jim Bouton was a sports caster for CBS in New York at the time Ball Four was broadcast. Perhaps that is why the show was shown on the network. Bouton may have had some pull. By the way, Bouton played a pitcher named Burton. His team was the Washington Americans. One line I remember from the show comes from a scene where Barton is reading "Catcher in the Rye." A teammate asks him, "Who did he play for?"