Reception
In the U.S., the episode remained the lowest-rated episode of the series, in total viewers, until the fifth season. This episode was viewed by 4.6 million viewers and received a rating of 2.4/5 in the key adults 18–49 demographic according to the Nielsen ratings system. The 2.4 refers to 2.4% of all 18- to 49-year-olds, and the 5 refers to 5% of all 18- to 49-year-olds watching television at the time of the broadcast. "Hard Ball" held 86% of 18- to 49-year-old viewers who had viewed the Scrubs episode "My Therapeutic Month" which aired at 9:00PM EST, before "Hard Ball" at 9:30.
Julia Ward of TV Squad exclaimed that the episode's three storylines were "all brilliant". She praised Alec Baldwin, saying that "his negotiation scenes were gold as was his line delivery". She felt that Baldwin's great acting was "not unique to this episode", and was what earned him the Golden Globe. Ward finished her review by saying that it was "satisfying to see a show come together as 30 Rock past few weeks - settling into its rhythm finding its feet". Eric Goldman of IGN felt that this episode "did a very skillful job of juggling three different storylines, all of which delivered solid laughs". He thought that the crew of 30 Rock had figured out "better uses for Jenna, and this episode offered some nice moments for her". He also enjoyed Tracy and Kenneth's subplot, saying it "was a decent one".
"Hard Ball" was nominated for a total of three awards, winning one. Jeff Richmond was nominated for a Creative Arts Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music for his work on this episode. Matt Hubbard, the writer of this episode, was also nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in the category of Best Episodic Comedy. The episode was also submitted to voters for the Primetime Emmy Awards category Outstanding Comedy Series, which it won.
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