The circled letters, reading left to right, spell ELPHABA. To fit the clues, they sink down to the bottom of the Down answers so they can then rise up. Click the grid to see the NYT animation of Elphaba DEFYING GRAVITY.
As many people have pointed out, 22-Across is not technically correct. In regular-season MLB games, extra innings start with a ghost runner (aka zombie runner) at second base.