Pitch stars Kylie Bunbury the first ever (fictional) female in Major League baseball. Now, the PTC is fighting to save the fledgling fall series from cancellation.
This might be a first for the The Parents Television Council: According to Deadline, the organization is making a plea to Fox to move the 2016 fall series Pitch from its current Thursday night timeslot — because they want to “ensure the show’s success.”
Pitch was created by Dan Fogelman and Rick Singer, and follows a pitcher named Ginny Baker whose signing with a Major League baseball team makes headlines. The team grudgingly accepts her, and Ginny herself now has to deal with the fact that, as the first female in the league, she isn’t just there to play ball. She’s got to stand as a positive example for women everywhere, which already gets her in trouble in the second episode of the series.
Related: Pitch 1×03 review: Hit me with your best shot
The PTC, whose primary aim is to protect the eyes and ears of young viewers, evidently deem the female-led drama a safe, positive family show, with president Tim Winter calling Pitch “one of the best new fall TV shows for families [and] a rare option in the TV universe,” partly due to its “inspirational female lead character.”
They are even reaching out to advertisers to increase support for the programming, which is quite a turn for the PTC, who are better known for discouraging advertisers from sponsoring content they’ve deemed inappropriate.
“We often contact advertisers to warn them of explicit programming, but Pitch gives us a great reason to encourage support for positive programming,” says Winter.
Pitch isn’t performing terribly, but it has failed to hook in major audiences so far. Ironically, the show has clashed with sports programming, which may help account for its on-the-bubble ratings.
Ahead of its premiere, Hypable’s Ariana Quiñónez deemed it “the most relevant show of 2016,” and we’re very much hoping for a season 2 renewal.