The title says it all...here are my top ten baseball movies of all time.
#1 Bull Durham-
Great cast and even better characters (Nuke Laloosh, Crash Davis, Annie Savouy) Kevin Costner plays a Minor League catcher who is brought in to help an up and coming pitcher with a golden arm, but no brains. Always remember that baseball is a simple game; "You throw the ball, you hit the ball, and you catch the ball."
#2 Major League
(1,two,and three put together even though three wasn't that good) Again, great cast and great characters. The down and out team with an evil owner and some crazy players (Wild Thing, Cerrano, Willie Mays Hayes) is in the cellar and climbs out to win the pennant.
#3 The Sandlot-
Smalls, Benny The Jet Rodriguez, The Beast, The Great Bambi...I could go on and on
#4 A League of their Own-
Hands down the best line in baseball movie history is uttered by Tom Hanks: "Are you crying?...There's no crying in baseball!" This movie does a great job of entertaining the audience while also showing a historical time in sports. I always hate it when Kit's team wins in the end.
#5 The Natural-
"Pick me a Winner" Roy Hobbs is a mythical ball-player who comes out of nowhere to lead the New York Knights. Hobbs has a past that nobody knows, except for one sportswriter (Robert Duvall). Hobbs uses his lightning struck bat "Wonderboy" to shatter some lights in one of the best scenes in baseball movie history.
#6 Field of Dreams-
Kevin Costner builds it, and "he" comes. Along the way he meets some characters from baseball's past and fights the foreclosure of his farm. If you didn't cry when his dad shows up you have no heart. I even heard Kim Jong-iL cried when he saw it.
#7 Pride of the Yankees-
A timeless classic in which Gary Cooper portrays the life of Lou Gehrig. Cooper (who looks at lot like Gehrig) delivered a great performance that showed Gehrig on and off the field. Babe Ruth played himself.
#8- 61*-
Billy Crystal directed this great movie which everyone could enjoy. Barry Pepper (Roger Maris) and Thomas Jane (Mickey Mantle) look just like the men that they portray. This movie focuses on the summer of 1961 when Mantle and Maris chase the homerun record by Babe Ruth. This film does a great job of showing how Maris suffered under all of the pressure from the fans and the media.
#9-The Bad News Bears (the original with Walter Matthau)-
The worst team in the league with the drunkest manager of any Little League team anywhere. Matthau tries to recruit better ballplayers as he tries to turn the team around.
#10 The Scout-
Brendan Fraser players a young country kid who throws over a hundred miles an hour. He is found by a scout (Albert Brooks) who tries to control and help the young kid get to pitch in the Major Leagues. The last part of the movie is great with Fraser climbing to the roof of Yankee Stadium to try to get out of pitching the game.
Just missing the cut- Eight Men Out, For the Love of the Game, Cobb
One note: The documentary "Baseball" by Ken Burns isn't on the list because it is so well made that it blows away anything on this list.
Write a comment, tell me your favorites.
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