Baseball in Movies

Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly in Take Me Out to the Ballgame.

Movies and baseball are two of my favorite hobbies. Often, the two subjects have combined with great effect. Baseball movies can be dramas, comedies or even musicals such as Take Me Out to the Ballgame (1949), with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra, and Damn Yankees (1958), which originated on broadway.

Baseball movies are often sentimental. The greatest such moment is in The Pride of the Yankees (1942), when Gary Cooper, playing the ailing Lou Gehrig, gives his farewell speech, "People all say that I've had a bad break, but today...today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.”

The most classic baseball comedy moment is in The Naughty Nineties(1945). Bud Abbott, "Now, on the St. Louis team we have Who's on first, What's on second, I Don't Know's on third."
Lou Costello, "That's what I want to find out. I want you to tell me the names of the fellas on the team."
Abbott, "I'm telling you; Who's on first, What's on second, I Don't Know's on third."
Costello, "You know the fella's names?"
Abbott, "Yes."
Costello, "Well, then who's playing first?"
Abbott, "Yes."
Costello, "I mean the fella's name on first base."
Abbott, "Who."
Costello, "The guy on first!"
Abbott, "Who is on first."
Costello, "What are you asking me for?"

Babe Ruth is probably the most famous baseball player of all time. He played himself in The Pride of the Yankees. Several movies have been made about him such as The Babe(1992), starring John Goodman and The Babe Ruth Story(1948), which features this line,"His name will live forever, as long as there is a ball, a bat, and a boy." Even my 9 year old son, who plays little league, knows who Babe Ruth is.

Speaking of little league, the best movie ever made about it is The Bad News Bears (1976). Walter Matthau has this line in it, that every dad who ever coached a game can relate to, "All right boys. Let's get back to the basics. This is a baseball. The object of the game is to keep the baseball within the confines of the playing field." Billy Bob Thornton is a little more blunt in the (2005) remake when he tells his players, “You guys swing like Helen Keller at a pinata party.”

But baseball is not just for the young. The Rookie (2002) and Mr 3000 (2004) are both about players who return to the game way into middle age. The Natural (1984)is another such film. In it, Wilford Brimley tells Robert Redford, "People don't start playing ball at your age, they retire!"

They retire or they become sportscasters. Bob Uecker plays the most sarcastic, and funniest, one ever put on film. "In case you haven't noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven't, the Indians have managed to win a few ball games, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar." He says in Major League (1989). He kept the oneliners going in Major League II(1994), "Well, The Indians have a runner. I think I'll wet my pants."

Tom Hanks stole the show in A League of Their Own (1992), Whether he was screaming at his players, "There's no crying in baseball!" or saying a prayer, "Uh, Lord, hallowed be Thy name. May our feet be swift; may our bats be mighty; may our balls... be plentiful."

Kevin Costner has also done great things in baseball movies. His first and best is Bull Durnham(1988). It is easily the best movie Susan Sarandon has ever done. She has this great line, "I'd never sleep with a player hitting under .250... not unless he had a lot of RBIs and was a great glove man up the middle."

Field of Dreams(1989), capitalizes on Baseball's history. James Earl Jones delivers this line that only a true baseball fan could fully appreciate, "The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time." Yes, some people take their baseball very seriously. In Fever Pitch (2005), Jimmy Fallon plays a dedicated Red Sox's fan who drops to one knee and proposes to girlfriend Drew Barrymore. He asks, “Will you go to opening day with me?” Romance is sometimes related to Baseball. In Good Will Hunting (1997), Robin Williams tells Matt Damon that he can remember the exact date he met the woman of his dreams, "Cus' it was game six of the World Series. Biggest game in Red Sox history."

Tom Selleck in Mr Baseball.

Baseball is, of course, not loved by everyone. Dominic West makes fun of baseball in The Forgotten (2004), when he says, "Baseball is great. It's the only sport in the world that you can play while taking a nap." Baseball has been marred by a strike, outrageous payrolls and steroid use. However, for true baseball fans it is about the love of the game. Or as Tom Selleck says in Mr Baseball(1992), "Baseball is grown men getting paid to play a game. When you were a kid, I bet you didn't pick up a bat and ball because you were dying to work." My favorite quote is spoken by Woody Allen in Zelig (1983) "I love baseball. You know, it doesn't have to mean anything. It's just very beautiful to watch."