TV's Best Bets

Saturday, June 18

“After Jackie,” 8-10 p.m., History. Yes, Jackie Robinson transformed baseball by breaking its color barrier. But it was 12 more years before every team was integrated … and 16 years after that before the first Black manager. This richly detailed film views three greats — Bill White, Curt Flood and Bob Gibson — of the St. Louis Cardinals. Facing segregated housing (in spring training) and a bigoted manager, they prevailed, winning two World Series titles.

“Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story,” 8-10:03 p.m., Lifetime. For a three-Saturday stretch, Lifetime will have new true-crime movies. They range from next week’s sub-par “He’s Not Worth Dying For” to a fairly good “Jailbreak Lovers” on July 2. This one at least has good work from star Candice King and a plot that keeps us guessing: Whose body is in the suitcase — Melanie or her husband? And did the jury get it right?

“Transplant,” 8 p.m., NBC; and/or “Murdoch Mysteries,” 7 and 8 p.m. ET, Ovation. Summer Saturdays are boosted by importing some solid Canadian shows. The NBC episode has doctors performing surgery during a power outage. The first Ovation one involves the death of a bluesman whose murder was told in song; in the second, we re-meet the deranged Amelia, who loved and kidnapped Crabtree.

Hockey, 8 p.m., ESPN. It’s the second game of the Stanley Cup finals, with the Colorado Avalanche hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa Bay has won two straight championships, but Colorado roared through the first three play-off rounds, winning 12 of 14 games. Elsewhere, sports fans have baseball on Fox, auto-racing on CBS and bouts (both UFC and boxing) on ESPN.

“Dean Martin: King of Cool” (2021), 6 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies. With all his success — 150 albums, 60 movies, an eight-year TV series — this film says, Martin wasn’t that comfortable. As a kid in Steubenville, Ohio, he spoken only Italian until he was 6 and quit school in 10th grade. This intriguing portrait is followed by Katharine Hepburn’s “Woman of the Year” (1942) at 8 p.m. and Woody Allen’s “Annie Hall” (1977) at 10.

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Saturday TV's Best Bets