Relief pitcher Jim Barton (former Yankee pitcher, sometime sportscaster and best-selling author Jim Bouton) played for the Washington Americans baseball team and wore number 56 on his jersey.
Also in the cast were Coach Pinky Pinkney (Bill McCutcheon); pot-bellied manager Cap Capograsso (Jack Somack); the massive and short-tempered Rhino Rhinelander (6’8″ former Oakland Raider Ben Davidson) – the bullpen catcher who had a very soft spot for his mother; Lenny “Birdman” Siegel (who was always in the tub), played by Lenny Schultz; number 18 Rayford Plunkett who loved country music (Marco St. John); the oft-injured utility infielder Orlando Lopez (Jaime Tirelli); David James Carroll as Bill Westlake, the rookie pitcher with a golden arm; and outfielder fielder C.B. “Cool Breeze” Travis (Sam Wright).
Most of the action occurred in the locker room before and after the game.
One problem in presenting authentic baseball characters was finding allowable homonyms for some favourite locker room words. Because of its time slot (within the family hour), the sensors were very strict about what the guys could and couldn’t say, and realism suffered in the G-rated dialogue.
“Bullpimp” was bleeped, “horse-crock” and “bull-horse” survived, and “horsepit” was still pending with the censors when the show was cancelled.
This CBS comedy – the creation of star Jim Bouton – aired on Wednesday nights at 8.30 pm (between Good Times and All in the Family) in September and October of 1976.
Seven episodes were videotaped in front of a live studio audience in New York, but only five episodes made it on the air.
Jim Barton
Jim Bouton Pinky Pinkney
Bill McCutcheon Cap Capograsso
Jack Somack Rhino Rhinelander
Ben Davidson Lenny “Birdman” Siegel
Lenny Schultz Rayford Plunkett
Marco St. John Orlando Lopez
Jaime Tirelli Bill Westlake
David James Carroll C.B. “Cool Breeze” Travis
Sam Wright
Episodes
Work in Progress | The Unpractical Joke | High-Flying Rookie | A Quiet Day at the Iroquois Hotel | What’s a Nice Watch Like You Doin’ in a Place Like This? || Rookie in Love*** | Closet Phobia***
NB: Episodes marked *** were not broadcast.
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