Arthur Makes the Team (episode)

Summary
Arthur and the gang form a baseball team, with Francine as assistant coach.

Plot
The episode opens with Arthur and Buster walking down a street, Arthur is not sure he will be good at baseball. Buster throws him his "Busterball" pitch which ends up in the sewer.

Many kids gather to see who made the team, Arthur and Buster, of course, make it along with many others. Everybody wants to be the pitcher, but, at the team's first practice Coach Oliver Frensky, Francine's father, notes that the team motto is team work, meaning everybody contributes.

Through the practice, Brain clearly emerges as the best pitcher. Meanwhile, Francine throws the ball too high, which leads to teasing from Buster. Arthur, makes several catching errors in the outfield and is subject to teasing from Francine.

The next day, in the first game against Mighty Mountain, Arthur and Francine continue to clash with one another and Arthur has a ball bounce off his glove for a home run. The team ends up losing.

At The Sugar Bowl after the game, the team argues with one another about losing the game much to the dislike of their coach, after he calms them down they see Arthur hanging his head, walking home. That night, Francine tries to convince her dad to "fire" Arthur from the team, instead he gives Francine the assignment of Assistant Coach; her first job is to help Arthur.

Arthur and Francine practice together the next day. Francine shows Arthur how to shield the sun from his eyes to make catches. Arthur teaches Francine how to throw straight, in return. In the end, they are both successful. At the teams playoff game against Mighty Mountain, Arthur gets a hit. Later, he runs down a fly ball and makes the catch.

He throws it to Francine, who throws it to Binky. Binky tags the runner (attempting to score) out, causing Buster to faint from excitement. Buster then hits a ball to which Mighty Mountain catches it and wins the game, and Francine shows she has also learned sportsmanship as she congratulates him for trying his best. She also decides to give Buster the same pointers she gave Arthur.

Characters

 * Arthur Read
 * Buster Baxter
 * Francine Frensky
 * Oliver Frensky
 * The Brain
 * Binky Barnes
 * Sue Ellen Armstrong
 * Jenna Morgan
 * Muffy Crosswire
 * George Lundgren
 * David Read
 * Jane Read
 * D.W. Read
 * Kate Read
 * Bitzi Baxter
 * Pal
 * Alex (cameo)
 * Fern Walters (cameo)
 * Prunella Deegan (cameo)
 * Mr. Haney (cameo)
 * Mr. Powers (cameo)
 * Mrs. Powers (cameo)
 * Mr. Barnes (cameo)
 * Mrs. Barnes (cameo)
 * 3rd Grade Male Rat (Number 2) (cameo)
 * Mighty Mountain Player (cameo)

Trivia

 * Irony: George wanted to be the pitcher too, despite not being on the team list.
 * Moral: Don't make fun of other people just because they  isn't good for your own benefits.
 * This episode's title along with "Buster Makes the Grade" is likely a spoiler on whether or not if the conclusion comes true.

Errors

 * Mrs. Powers' new blonde hair and pale complexion is seen, but did not catch on at that time, and her original brown hair and brown complexion was still being used until in "Buster Baxter, Cat Saver" from Season 2.
 * In the beginning of the episode, everyone standing near the list made the team. However, Alex was standing next to Binky and was not on the baseball team.
 * Arthur's baseball cap was yellow, but when he hits the ball with a baseball bat, it was orange.

Home video
VHS:
 * Arthur Makes The Team

DVD:
 * Arthur Makes The Team

Gallery
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