Last week we posted a picture of Superman taking a pitch off of his noggin and wondered aloud why the catcher in the frame had green hair. Well, an intrepid commenter quickly pointed out that the catcher was none other than The Joker, and the game was a super heroes vs. super villains matchup from the comic book DC Super Stars No. 10 (Dec., 1976). Details are here, including the lineups, and some play-by-play. But as we perused, we noticed something strange. According to the rules of this particular game, no one was allowed to use super powers. Yet Superman was permitted to play. And he batted ninth!
We had no choice but to investigate. Wouldn't the Kryptonian-born Kal-El be baseball's ultimate slugger; earth's yellow sun acting as his own personal brand of super-steroids? Perhaps, but we uncovered a serious weakness. Take a look at the cover above, from Action Comics No. 389 (June, 1970). Superman, apparently, has serious difficulty with off-speed stuff; even Little Leaguers can make him look foolish. Now it all makes sense. Except for the fact that he's being mercilessly heckled by the crowd. What's that about? We're sure somebody has an answer there too.
We Love A Series That Leaves An Impression [Deadspin]
A Justice League Is Like A Baseball Team [Chris's Invincible Super-Blog]