Not to be confused with Baseball (ball).
Baseball is featured in several different contexts in Calvin and Hobbes.
The Baseball Story Arc
This story arc lasted from 4/16 to 5/5 1990. In it, Moe bullied Calvin into joining the school baseball team after finding out he didn't sign up. Calvin, powerless, reluctantly accepted. When Calvin's father caught wind of this, he tried to train his son for the game. However, training was cut short when Calvin got injured by the ball. On his first day of baseball, Calvin got distracted and, unable to follow the game, caught an out for the opposing team. Threatened by his teammates, he quit the baseball league. This experience left Calvin with a deep dislike for organized sports.
Baseball at Calvin's House
Despite lacking the manpower for conventional baseball, Calvin and Hobbes have tried their hand at the sport on several occasions. Their house rules include the addition of at least twenty-three bases (the "secret base" notwithstanding), and in order to compensate for the lack of other players, will either have Calvin and Hobbes hold multiple ranks or require accounting for imaginary "ghost" teammates.
Vicious Baseball
Akin in concept to Calvin's Killer Bicycle, there is a malevolent baseball that is apparently trying to eat Calvin. See Story arcs.
Quotes from baseball
- Calvin: "I can't believe this moronic sport is our national pastime."
- Hobbes: "You're out. Gimme a dollar."
- Hobbes: "That run doesn't count! You didn't touch third base!"
- Calvin: "That's 'cause third base crawled to the outfield!"
- Hobbes: "I'm up to bat again! What fun! Two man baseball is a real sport!
- Calvin: "A real sport for idiots. Next time, I'm gonna tag you out with the bat instead of the ball."
- Calvin: "Kicking dust is the only part of this game we really like."
- Calvin: (nosebleed) "Thags for the tib, Dad. Fide my node and pud id in ice so they can sew id bag od!"
- Calvin: (nosebleed) "I'B BLEEDIG! BY ODE DAD ID TRYIG TO GILL ME!"
- Calvin: (nosebleed) "I'b nod playig badeball eddy more! Nebber again! I hade it!"
- Calvin: (nosebleed) "All by charagder id drippig out by node!"
- Calvin: "My whole life is a disaster. I get injured just trying to learn the skills it takes to play a game I don't even want to play!"
- Calvin: "I don't understand it, Hobbes. The kids teased me when I didn't play baseball. Then they yelled at me when I did play. Then the teacher called me a "quitter" when I stopped playing. Unless you're a star, you can't please anyone."
- Hobbes: "In that case, why not just please yourself?"
- Calvin: "Because Mom won't let me move to Madagascar."
- Hobbes: "Yeah, well, my ghost outfielders came in and beat the tobacco juice outta him."
- Hobbes: "The ghost crowd supports me. They're boo-ing you!"
- Calvin: "Sometimes I wish I had a neighborhood with more kids."
- Hobbes: (sneezes into mit)
- Calvin: Hey! No fair! Booger balls are Illegal!