“The Show” is a documentary television series that debuted on the high-definition cable channel Mojo on May 30, 2007. Mojo is available on Bright House, Cablevision, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner cable systems.
The series follows six professional baseball prospects who play for the Tucson Sidewinders in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. The show takes place during the 2006 season.
The Subjects
“The Show” follows third baseman Brian Barden, pitchers Casey Daigle, Bill Murphy and Dustin Nippert, and outfielders Carlos Quentin and Chris Young, all of whom were considered top prospects for the Diamondbacks entering 2006.
The Good
The shots: The cinematography is exactly what you’d like to see from a high-definition television show. It’s gorgeously shot in all its HD, widescreen glory.
The players: Judging from the first effort, the producers picked six interesting personalities to follow. There are overachievers and can’t-miss prospects who are struggling. There are college-educated players and players who turned pro right out of high school. Daigle is married to former U.S. Olympic softball star Jennie Finch, who appears in the pilot episode. And “The Show” is at its best when it lets these players and subjects do the talking, letting them describe their thoughts instead of using trite voiceovers.
Unfortunately...
The Bad
The voiceovers: They take some questionable liberties. A line from the pilot, narrated by actor Joe Mantegna: “Tucson is just 125 miles from Phoenix. And with a good cut and a tailwind, you could almost hit it there with a hard line drive. But for some of the pros on the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders, it might as well be on the moon.” All that line needs is somebody giving "110 percent." There are a few other eye-rollers as well.
Early on, we learn that roughly 3 percent of minor-league players will make the majors. Then we get this line later in the episode: “For every can’t miss kid, there are 1,000 more who almost were and never will be.” Doesn’t add up, does it?
The timing: It’s been a year since it was filmed, so you don't have to be an investigative reporter to spoil the ending. Might be unrealistic from a production standpoint, but a quicker turnaround would have made the series feel more relevant. (Spoiler alert: Quentin and Young are now with the Diamondbacks.)
Overall
“The Show” is beautiful to watch, the concept is solid, and Diamondbacks fans certainly should enjoy it. Cut out the syrupy script and it’s even better. It won’t likely be a "hit" because of the few subscribers to the channel, but it’s worthy of a look if you have the right equipment. Don’t have HD? You can also watch ”The Show” online.
