A funny episode, with some very revealing scenes about Welsh. Maybe I missed something, but I believe this is the first time we hear Welsh refered to by his first name (Harding, by the way). I loved the way they incorporated the regulars into this ep as townsfolk (Frannie was a deputy, Turnbull a baseball player, Thatcher a sports reporter, and the Duck brothers as a couple of old men). Frannie's was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it scene but we see quite a bit of the others. The sub-plot with Ray having to play the game and the interaction between Welsh and his brother were more interesting (IMHO) than the whole find-out-who-is-trying-to-sabotage-the-team storyline. By the way, how did Fraser learn how to throw a cut fastball out in the Northern Territories?
A good episode but not a great one. I make the distinction on the basis that I cannot remember any of the lines from the ep (except Ray's "I just wanna do the best for my team" bit; that's exactly what every player says on camera) and that's usually a very telling sign; if it's not quotable something's missing.
This was one funny episode! The case was almost secondary.
All the "cameos" were a hoot - Turnbull as a ballplayer, Thatcher as a sportscaster (with a belly-button tatoo?! Checking out Kowalski's "Louisville Slugger?!"), Francesca as a no-nonsense deputy, but the best ones were our Duckboys as old hayseeds. It was almost a premonition of Huey and Dewey together in the PBA Retirement Home (sans overalls and hick accents).
The Clint Eastwood-esque shot of Kowalski arriving was classic. And the home-run ending was a direct sendup of "The Natural." All that was needed was someone walking out of a cornfield ("Field of Dreams").
The story was okay, and doesn't seem that important. What was fun was to see the regular actors from "Due South" take on some different funny roles in the town where Welsh's brother is the sheriff. It was great to see Bruce Weitz and Max Gail guest star in this show. I remembered when these actors played cops on TV!
I liked the most was the relationship between Harding Welsh and his brother, Wilson. This was Beau Starr's episode to shine and he does so admirably. It was nice to see Welsh out of his office and see that he has a life like everyone else. The argument between Harding and Wilson were fun to watch because they picked on each other and had their arguments, but one can feel that underneath they do care about each other. I basically rewatched the episode again just because I enjoyed the scenes between Beau Starr and Max Gail.
Also, another great plus, you see Kowalski stripping down in the locker room and boy does he look hot! Callum Keith Rennie also looks fine in that baseball uniform!
All in all, a sweet little episode that left me wanting more to see the outside of the office life of Welsh.