Sports fan Fred wins a competition to meet baseball star Luis Santiago, but when the gang arrives at the stadium, Santiago seems to be in a slump, which is bad news for his effort to break Cab Craig's home-run record. Santiago confesses that he's been menaced by Craig's ghost, who seems to want his record unbroken.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- Baseball Episode
- Bland-Name Product: Like many large arenas in America, the stadium is named for its corporate sponsor — the "Cookie Co."
- Catch a Falling Star: Scooby, cornered by the specter on one side of the retractible roof, tries to make the jump to the other side but falls short. Fred jumps after him, using one of the ropes he, Daphne, and Velma used while the gang was clue-hunting earlier. He catches him and even almost nabs the specter.
- Chekhov's Gun: The girls and Fred use ropes to rappel down from the stadium roof to get a look at the scoreboard. They come in handy again when Scooby falls while trying to escape the specter.
- Commonality Connection: Daphne suspects publicist Autumn Summerfield, given that her shoes weren't wet, despite her claiming she'd been out of the stadium when the specter attacked. Ultimately, Autumn reveals that she carries a second pair of shoes with her, just in case. Daphne gushes that she thought she was the only one.
- Crazy-Prepared: Autumn Summerfield keeps a pair of spare shoes in case of rain, something that Daphne is happy to agree with.
- "Meet the Celebrity" Contest: Fred (a sports fan) wins a contest to meet Luis Santiago, a baseball star who stands on the brink of breaking a home-run record. The gang arrives to find out that he's being threatened by the ghost of the record-holder
- Mythology Gag: A cute blonde named Googy is working the snack bar, and she seems to have a crush on Shaggy.
- Oblivious to Love: The snack bar attendant, a blonde girl called Googy, goes above and beyond to cater to Shaggy, even offering to stop by during the game. She also gazes at him as he walks away, clearly suggesting she has a crush. However, Shaggy doesn't notice, attributing her attention to devotion to her job.
- Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: The title is a pun on The Natural.
- A Sinister Clue: Velma was able to deduce the identity of the Baseball Specter when she sees footage of Cab Craig pitching with his right arm, whilst the Specter, and Bob Taylor according to his baseball card, are both left-handed.
- Strange Minds Think Alike: Daphne's not the only one who keeps an extra pair of shoes in her bag.
- Take Me Out At The Ballgame: The villain of the week is the ghost of a baseball star who doesn't want an up-and-coming hitter to break his record. Among other things, he attacks him with flaming baseballs.
