When "Bay City Blues" premiered in 1983, the producers made no secret that it was an exact copy of the formula that made "Hill Street Blues" a critical success. From the similar sounding title to the same producers (Steven Bochco and Jeffrey Lewis) to the same actors (Ken Olin, Dennis Franz, Peter Jurasik, Pat Corley), it was easy to spot the similarities. The only major difference was that the setting was a baseball diamond instead of a police station.
The show followed the struggles of the minor league baseball team, the Bay City Blue Birds. The character similarities to "Hill Street Blues" were very remarkable. Manager Joe Rohner (Michael Nouri) was basically the same character as Frank Furillo. He was a stern but fair authority figure, who was generally a calming influence in a hectic clubhouse. Similar to HSB, he was secretly having an affair with a high profile woman (Sunny Hayward) that eventually went public. Ozzie Peoples was the equivalent of Phil Esterhouse. He was a wise and very well-respected veteran who was nearing retirement. Rocky Padillo was similar to Andrew Renko. He was good at what he did but somewhat immature and cocky. Angelo Carbone (Dennis Franz) was well very similar to Sal Benedetto and Norman Buntz, both also played by Franz. He was kind of a loose cannon who did not always follow conventional methods. Some of the other character with key roles were: Ray Holtz who owned the team, Frenchy Nuckles, a star pitcher whose marriage to Judy was falling apart, and Mitch Klein, the team's announcer who was always trying to come upon a juicy story.
Since the show only ran eight episodes and had a large ensemble cast, many of the characters (Lynwood Scott, Deejay Cunningham) were never fully developed. The show dealt with many common issues that were prevalent in baseball such as drug and alcohol abuse, infidelity, and the struggle to make the big time.
Though the show was well written and well acted, its lack of success is not surprising. From the start, it had two strikes against it. It was a sports-themed show which generally don't score high ratings and it was copying a show that was not exactly a ratings powerhouse to begin with. Since its cancellation, the show has been mostly recognized as the first major role for Sharon Stone, who would hit it big in "Basic Instinct".
The show followed the struggles of the minor league baseball team, the Bay City Blue Birds. The character similarities to "Hill Street Blues" were very remarkable. Manager Joe Rohner (Michael Nouri) was basically the same character as Frank Furillo. He was a stern but fair authority figure, who was generally a calming influence in a hectic clubhouse. Similar to HSB, he was secretly having an affair with a high profile woman (Sunny Hayward) that eventually went public. Ozzie Peoples was the equivalent of Phil Esterhouse. He was a wise and very well-respected veteran who was nearing retirement. Rocky Padillo was similar to Andrew Renko. He was good at what he did but somewhat immature and cocky. Angelo Carbone (Dennis Franz) was well very similar to Sal Benedetto and Norman Buntz, both also played by Franz. He was kind of a loose cannon who did not always follow conventional methods. Some of the other character with key roles were: Ray Holtz who owned the team, Frenchy Nuckles, a star pitcher whose marriage to Judy was falling apart, and Mitch Klein, the team's announcer who was always trying to come upon a juicy story.
Since the show only ran eight episodes and had a large ensemble cast, many of the characters (Lynwood Scott, Deejay Cunningham) were never fully developed. The show dealt with many common issues that were prevalent in baseball such as drug and alcohol abuse, infidelity, and the struggle to make the big time.
Though the show was well written and well acted, its lack of success is not surprising. From the start, it had two strikes against it. It was a sports-themed show which generally don't score high ratings and it was copying a show that was not exactly a ratings powerhouse to begin with. Since its cancellation, the show has been mostly recognized as the first major role for Sharon Stone, who would hit it big in "Basic Instinct".
