Baseball

Season 11994

The history of the sport of baseball in America, told through archival photos, film footage, and the words of those who contributed to the game in each era. Writers, historians, players, baseball personnel, and fans review key events and the significance of the game in America's history.

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9 Episodes

E01 Inning One: Our Game

In New York City, in the 1840s, people need a diversion from the "railroad pace" at which they work and live. They find it in a game of questionable origins. Inning One, Our Game, looks at the origins of baseball in the 1840s and takes the story up to 1900. Burns refutes the myth that Abner Doubleday invented baseball in Cooperstown and traces its roots instead to the earliest days of the nation.

September 18, 1994

E02 Inning Two: Something Like a War

In 1894, a sportswriter named Byron Bancroft "Ban" Johnson takes over a struggling minor league - the Western League - and turns it into a financial success. Inning Two, Something Like a War, takes viewers through 1910 and introduces some of the game's most celebrated and colorful characters, including Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson.

September 19, 1994

E03 Inning Three: The Faith of Fifty Million People

Examine the century's second decade, which was dominated by the Black Sox scandal. George Herman “Babe” Ruth makes his first major league appearance (as a member of the Boston Red Sox) and a wave of immigration helps fill the stands with new fans, eager to “become American” by learning America's game.

September 20, 1994

E04 Inning Four: A National Heirloom

This episode concentrates on Babe Ruth, whose phenomenal performance thrilled the nation throughout the 1920s and rescued the game from the scandal of the previous decade.

September 21, 1994

E05 Inning Five: Shadow Ball

The story of the Negro Leagues in the 1930s. “Shadow Ball” refers to a common pre-game feature in which the players staged a mock game with an imaginary ball. Though unintended, the pantomime was an apt metaphor for the exclusion of blacks from major league play at that time.

September 22, 1994

E06 Inning Six: The National Pastime

This episode covers the 1940s and includes Joe DiMaggio's celebrated hitting streak, the awe-inspiring performance of Ted Williams and what Burns calls “baseball's finest moment” — the debut of Jackie Robinson, who broke the color barrier as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.

September 25, 1994

E07 Inning Seven: The Capitol of Baseball

Viewers are taken through the 1950s when New York City had three successful baseball teams and dominated the World Series. By the end of the decade, the Giants and Dodgers had left New York, a signal that the old game was changed forever.

September 26, 1994

E08 Inning Eight: A Whole New Ball Game

The field is moved to the 1960s. This episode traces the emergence of television, the expansion to new cities and the building of anonymous multipurpose stadiums that robbed the game of its intimacy and some of its urban following.

September 27, 1994

E09 Inning Nine: Home

The final episode looks at baseball from the 1970s to the present, including the establishment of the free agent system, the rise in player salaries, the continued expansion, the dilution of talent, the ongoing battles between labor and management and the scandals.

September 28, 1994

Baseball

E01 Inning One: Our Game

E02 Inning Two: Something Like a War

E03 Inning Three: The Faith of Fifty Million People

E04 Inning Four: A National Heirloom

E05 Inning Five: Shadow Ball

E06 Inning Six: The National Pastime

E07 Inning Seven: The Capitol of Baseball

E08 Inning Eight: A Whole New Ball Game

E09 Inning Nine: Home

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp

Lewis & Clark - The Journey of the Corps of Discovery

The Stand

Orphan Black

Star Trek: The Next Generation

The Mandalorian

Money Heist

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Black Mirror

Stranger Things

The Walking Dead

Game of Thrones

Breaking Bad

Chernobyl

Dexter

The Simpsons

The 100

Euphoria

Sherlock

E01 Inning One: Our Game

E02 Inning Two: Something Like a War

E03 Inning Three: The Faith of Fifty Million People

E04 Inning Four: A National Heirloom

E05 Inning Five: Shadow Ball

E06 Inning Six: The National Pastime

E07 Inning Seven: The Capitol of Baseball

E08 Inning Eight: A Whole New Ball Game

E09 Inning Nine: Home