We got a little bit of everything in tonight’s Franchise: fisticuffs, a behind-the-scenes training sequence and and a glimpse inside a player’s head. Plus, we temporarily escaped some of the themes the series has relied on heavily to date. I wasn’t too upset that we didn’t get any footage of players frolicking in their mansions with their adorable kids, or stretching in the training room, or delivering extensive talking head promos. We did, however, get an awful lot of slow-motion footage of Andres Torres doing things like running and walking and looking at the camera in meaningful dim light (and one inexplicable slow-motion shot of a seagull flying away). I would have preferred more footage of him performing Rocky-style training in jorts, but I was happy to get what we got.
The team is struggling in this week’s installment, and I for one roll my eyes sarcastically and say “Really, Giants fans? Is that hard for you? Is it difficult to watch your World Series-winning team stink a little bit? That must be so tough.” Seriously, I know it’s not fun when your team underperforms, but as a Chicagoan to me that’s not plot: that’s setting. So here's me and my tiny violin.
Even if I’m not that sad to see the team struggle, I did feel bad for Torres, who was working through a slump throughout most of the episode. He seems like a seriously nice guy (although I wish it wasn’t considered so bizarre that a baseball player would take the time to say hi to his parking attendant and ushers.) I liked watching Torres get a swinging lesson from Carlos Beltran, and how grateful Torres was afterwards. I hope his season turns around, although there is something very fascinating, psychologically, about watching a player slump. Your fans can turn on you, even when they want you to perform well. Or, you could become Chuck Knoblauch (he’s not really relevant here but I just happened to find his yips extremely fascinating and wanted an excuse to link to this story.)
Another inside-baseball-type scene we got tonight was watching Ryan Vogelsong’s wife watch her husband pitch against the Diamondbacks. I’d love to see more of that. What exactly do those ladies talk about during the game? And did Mrs. Brandon Belt bring her own snacks?