I'm so sick of this tombstone mentality

-the first baseman had no reason to chase Baéz, if he just stepped on the bag he was automatically out

-theres two outs, so if hes out, the inning is over. even if the runner on second base gets home, the run doesnt count. its not until hes safe at first that the run scores

-theres no specific rule in baseball about running backwards from first, just that you “cannot retreat to home base” meaning so long as if you dont touch the plate, its fine

-Baéz ran backwards to kill enough to get the run to score, and then stole and extra base on the base on the bad throw

-HE TOOK THE TIME TO UMPIRE HIS OWN PLAY AND CALL SAFE

Javier Báez (the batter, a Chicago Cub, wearing blue) has just hit the ball. His job is now to run around the bases - 1st, 2nd, 3rd, back to where he started (“home”), at which point he will have scored a point. In practice, he will probably stop partway, wait for the next batter to get a hit, and try to make it home from there.

The Pittsburgh Pirates (in white) are fielding. Their job is to stop the Cubs from scoring by getting them out, by various combinations of catching the ball and tagging people or bases with it.

The scoreboard (top left) shows that one Cub has already made it to second base, so he will resume running now that Javy has a hit. It also shows that two Cubs are out. If a third Cub gets out, their turn to bat will be over, it will be the Pirates’ turn to bat, and the Cubs can’t score anymore (for now, but that’s not relevant).

The Pirate at first base (the first baseman) has the ball. All he needs to do is step on first base while holding it before Javy gets there, and Javy is out. This is probably the number one most common thing a first baseman has to do.

He does not do it.

For some reason he starts chasing Javy, presumably trying to tag him with the ball directly. This is a perfectly legitimate way of getting him out, but also completely unnecessary.

This has never happened to Javy before. Unsure what else to do, he just kind of… jogs backwards away from him.

Meanwhile, the Cub who was at second base (Contreras) has made it all the way back to home. Because the Pirates’ first baseman has helpfully walked the ball back home, he can easily toss it to the Pirate at home (the catcher) who will tag Contreras out.

The catcher doesn’t tag him in time.

The umpire signals that Contreras is safe (not out).

Javy also signals that Contreras is safe, just for fun. He’s never been nearby when a teammate makes it home before, and he’s enjoying himself.

Notice that the score has not changed, even though Contreras made it home. That’s because Javy is still technically running to first base. If he gets out before he reaches it, the Cubs’ turn to bat is over, and nothing else that’s happened since he hit the ball matters.

Javy remembers this, and heads back to first base. The catcher throws the ball to another Pirates fielder, who is frantically running to do the first baseman’s job.

He doesn’t catch it.

Javy is safe at first. Contreras scores (although the scoreboard won’t change for a second).

Javy notices how far away that ball landed, and decides he can make it to second base before anyone picks it up and tags him out.

An offscreen Pirate throws the ball to second base, where another Pirate is ready and waiting to catch it, tag Javy out, and end the Cubs’ turn to bat.

He doesn’t catch it.

Javy is safe at second. The video doesn’t show it, but he will go on to score as well.

This should have been a very easy out for the Pirates, but through two dropped catches and one truly bizarre decision from the first baseman, they snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and turned it into two points for the Cubs.

(i am no expert, and this isn't very in depth...)

each scene of the revue starlight can be categorised as the abstract or the present reality.

the abstract is flashbacks, revues, and interludes, and the present reality is the more grounded scenes like the scene of everyone in the seisho dorm living room and the script reveal for 101th’s starlight. with a few exceptions for dramatic or emotional effect, the abstract contains music, but the present reality has no music but a constant, mundane rumbling sound effect: whether that’s the wind, the washing machine, or the train.

this lack of music in these scenes made me feel uncomfortable as a viewer, and it really stuck in my brain. it’s unusual for revue starlight, especially as an anime and bushiroad property from the modern era, to not have some kind of background music at almost all times. there’s usually at least some music, right? music is the window to a character’s emotions and thoughts! it establishes the tone of the scene, the genre, the setting! it’s so important! and there isn’t any!

but these sound effects are their own music, and they tell their own story.

of course the absence of music is to create a distinction between the reality and the abstract, but also to contrast the tv show, or to put it into narrative perspective, the characters’ second year of high school. the melodies of their blissful high school lives are now replaced with the uncomfortable, looming reality that adulthood is approaching. do you remember that feeling, maybe near to your graduation, the crushing and shocking realisation that you’ll never get these years of childhood back? that you’re about to be thrust into the adult world? even as a teenager, you still have a child-like innocence that is threatened by this realisation.

the monotonous droning that accompanies this lack of music puts this passage of time at the forefront. how many times have you sat in a quiet room with a ticking clock? a washing machine? a microwave? did you feel uncomfortable with this heightened awareness of the passage of time? were you anxious? bored? desperate for the time to hurry up, or desperate for it to slow down?

in the train scene, kaoruko, even when everyone around her is having interesting conversations, is focusing on the sounds of the train. she says “how long is this going to keep rumbling on for?” and it’s not a coincidence that, in the previous scene, after lashing out at everyone for forgetting the auditions, she stumbles upon the room that is filled with the sound of the rumbling washing machines. she’s being confronted with the inevitable passage of time, and it’s frustrating her.

(i am no expert, and this isn't very in depth...)

each scene of the revue starlight can be categorised as the abstract or the present reality.

the abstract is flashbacks, revues, and interludes, and the present reality is the more grounded scenes like the scene of everyone in the seisho dorm living room and the script reveal for 101th’s starlight. with a few exceptions for dramatic or emotional effect, the abstract contains music, but the present reality has no music but a constant, mundane rumbling sound effect: whether that’s the wind, the washing machine, or the train.

this lack of music in these scenes made me feel uncomfortable as a viewer, and it really stuck in my brain. it’s unusual for revue starlight, especially as an anime and bushiroad property from the modern era, to not have some kind of background music at almost all times. there’s usually at least some music, right? music is the window to a character’s emotions and thoughts! it establishes the tone of the scene, the genre, the setting! it’s so important! and there isn’t any!

but these sound effects are their own music, and they tell their own story.

of course the absence of music is to create a distinction between the reality and the abstract, but also to contrast the tv show, or to put it into narrative perspective, the characters’ second year of high school. the melodies of their blissful high school lives are now replaced with the uncomfortable, looming reality that adulthood is approaching. do you remember that feeling, maybe near to your graduation, the crushing and shocking realisation that you’ll never get these years of childhood back? that you’re about to be thrust into the adult world? even as a teenager, you still have a child-like innocence that is threatened by this realisation.

the monotonous droning that accompanies this lack of music puts this passage of time at the forefront. how many times have you sat in a quiet room with a ticking clock? a washing machine? a microwave? did you feel uncomfortable with this heightened awareness of the passage of time? were you anxious? bored? desperate for the time to hurry up, or desperate for it to slow down?

in the train scene, kaoruko, even when everyone around her is having interesting conversations, is focusing on the sounds of the train. she says “how long is this going to keep rumbling on for?” and it’s not a coincidence that, in the previous scene, after lashing out at everyone for forgetting the auditions, she stumbles upon the room that is filled with the sound of the rumbling washing machines. she’s being confronted with the inevitable passage of time, and it’s frustrating her.