A Whole New Ball Game
Baseball and comedy are curiously compatible.
It probably passed a lot of readers by, but baseball season is underway, over in the US. The Major League season was due to begin in the spring, and we were supposed to be getting another of their games at London's Olympic Stadium too - as promoted by our own Jimmy Carr last year. Then everything went on hold, for months.
What's this got to do with comedy, you wonder, apart from the Carr promos? Well there is something about America's national game that appeals to comedy types, here and across the pond. Certain UK comics get a bit obsessive about it, in fact - and you have to be a bit obsessive, given what time it's usually on over here.
You can catch up easily enough on the web nowadays, of course; all the stats are on the MLB's official webpage, or a site like WSN.com covers the latest sports news. And as for the live stuff, those unsociable hours are absolutely perfect when you're just home and buzzing from a late gig.
The first time baseball got a proper foothold in the UK was in the late 1990s, when Channel 5 started showing live games, all night long. Their coverage featured occasional guest appearances by Phill Jupitus, who's such a big Boston Red Sox fan, he has a tattoo of their logo on his arm. His old Comedy Store mate Andy Smart is another big baseball devotee (although he actually hosted American Football, early in his TV career).
In the States, baseball and comedy go hand in hand. One of the greatest stand-up routines ever written is all about the game: the Abbott and Costello classic Who's on First?. Much later, the sitcom Seinfeld devoted many episodes to the ups and downs of George Costanza as he got himself a job with the New York Yankees. And more recently straddling both worlds is Alex Edelman, who became a terrific stand-up while also writing speeches for the LA Dodgers and his beloved Boston Red Sox.
Even if you seemingly have no knowledge of baseball whatsoever, you probably use its terminology, unwittingly. If you're a fan of leftfield comedy (balls lobbed from left field often surprise batters), and enjoy those acts who like to throw a few curve balls (a pitcher's secret weapon), but still knock it out of the park (a batter hitting a home run), you're also influenced by baseball.
Or perhaps you're into romantic comedies, and tales of hopeful lotharios trying to get to first base, or indeed second and third, if it's a bit raunchier. Maybe you're a lover of the comedy community, busy on social media, who loves to touch base with acts and fellow fans (batters run to the bases when they hit it, unless they knock it out of the park).
Perhaps you've even given stand-up a go yourself, gotten over the nerves, and stepped up to the plate (where baseball pitchers throw from). You can see why it's a sport loved by wordsmiths.
Or maybe you don't fit into any of those categories, exactly. But I bet we're in the right ballpark.