Paul Giamatti's dad, Angelo Bartlett Giamatti, was a very important figure in baseball. He was Commissioner of Major League Baseball.
The recurring musical motif is by Mozart. Noah Buschel described Mozart as "the original phenom."
Even though they play father and son, Ethan Hawke is just sixteen years older than Johnny Simmons in real life.
The Florida high school where Hopper Gibson plays, Port St. Lucie, is also where Rick Ankiel went to school. Ankiel was a MLB pitcher who also had a case of the yips and could not throw strikes before transitioning into an outfielder.