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Issue Date: March 25, 2007
Best baseball movies ever
By Andrew Friedman
Our exclusive panel takes its turn at bat.
With opening day on April 1, our thoughts naturally turn to baseball -- and baseball movies. This past December, USA WEEKEND polled film critics at top newspapers about their favorite holiday movies and moments. Now, we ask baseball writers and columnists at other top newspapers to answer this question: What makes for a great baseball movie? Although some of the films mentioned here repeatedly are classics for the ages -- "Bull Durham" and "Field of Dreams" -- others may end up surprising you. In fact, a goofball comedy prevents Durham from being named the unanimous all-time best.
Troy E. Renck Denver Post
BEST BASEBALL MOVIE OF ALL TIME "Bull Durham" (1988)
"'Bull Durham' really 'gets it' on the mound and in the locker room. Failure is central to baseball, and "Bull Durham" conveys failure in an accurate, even noble, light."
BEST LEADING MAN "Robert Redford's portrayal in The Natural is very compelling. When he swings, you believe he can hit a ball."
BEST AUTHORITY FIGURE "Walter Matthau in the original Bad News Bears was remarkably insensitive and politically incorrect. But, in the end, his team won. That's the whole point, right?"
BEST MOMENT OF REDEMPTION "An angry Gary Busey tutors a kid in Rookie of the Year. In the end, he discovers why he loves baseball."
BEST ON-FIELD SCENE "When the tiger eats the base runner in 'Naked Gun.' It's totally unrealistic. But the scene gives me a laugh every time I see it."
WHY WE LOVE THESE MOVIES "As with 'Field of Dreams,' the best of the baseball movies reminds me of playing catch in the backyard with my two sons."
Dom Amore Hartford Courant
BEST BASEBALL MOVIE OF ALL TIME "Bull Durham"
"Durham is just terrific. Even the most knowledgeable baseball fans can learn something from this film. It's a fictional story, but it manages to be very realistic."
BEST LEADING MAN "I would pick Kevin Costner. Not for Durham, but 'Field of Dreams.' His love of baseball is obvious. It elevates the film."
BEST AUTHORITY FIGURE "When he researched his role for The Natural, Wilford Brimley went out of his way to find out how a baseball manager in that era would be. He made a minor character bigger than it was."
BEST MOMENT OF REDEMPTION "OK, I know this film is corny and nearly 60 years old, but I like William Bendix in The Babe Ruth Story. Bendix conveys Ruth as a great, emerging icon, despite his clear character flaws."
BEST ON-FIELD SCENE When Roger Maris hits his 61st home run in 61*, it's an outstanding re-creation, taking me back to the old days at Yankee Stadium."
WHY WE LOVE THESE MOVIES Baseball is the closest thing to a movie in real life. And, as with Bang the Drum Slowly, you see a whole season in a couple hours."
Sam Borden The Florida Times-Union
BEST BASEBALL MOVIE OF ALL TIME "Major League" (1989)
"It's a great combination of hilarity and truth when it comes to revealing what goes on in a major league clubhouse."
BEST LEADING MAN "Redford is the definition of what a graceful actor is in The Natural. You really want to believe that the action on the screen is real. Fortunately, he does make you believe it."
BEST AUTHORITY FIGURE "In 'Field of Dreams,' James Earl Jones commands a presence. He'sthe ultimate authority figure."
BEST MOMENT OF REDEMPTION "I love Rick 'Wild Thing' Vaughn (Charlie Sheen) in "Major League." You root for him when he's getting into trouble. And it turns out his biggest problem was that he couldn't see. A simple pair of glasses fixes his flaw."
BEST ON-FIELD SCENE
"Robert Wuhl's character enters a drawn-out mound discussion in 'Bull Durham' and, in a couple lines, solves everyone's problems."
WHY WE LOVE THESE MOVIES "Think of Doc Graham stepping off the field to save Costner's daughter in 'Field of Dreams.' It's nice -- and sad. He gives up baseball to save a girl's life."
Brian Murphy Idaho Stateman
BEST BASEBALL MOVIE OF ALL TIME Bull Durham
"It's easy to visualize what happens here, in Durham, N.C., happening in every small town, every year, throughout the country."
BEST LEADING MAN "As longtime journeyman Crash Davis, Costner is easy to root for in Bull Durham. He's a guy who'strying to live out his dream."
BEST AUTHORITY FIGURE "In Bad News Bears, Matthau is human and funny. But you probably don't want your kidplaying for him."
BEST MOMENT OF REDEMPTION "I have to go with Dennis Quaid in The Rookie. This is a guy who goes from being a science teacher to a baseball pitcher in the major leagues. You can't pursue a dream any better than that."
BEST ON-FIELD SCENE "The celebration at the end of the movie "Major League" is exactly what you want to see on the screen in that kind of moment."
WHY WE LOVE THESE MOVIES "When a great movie moment actually happened -- the Gehrig farewell speech in Pride of the Yankees -- it's poignant."
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New in baseball
Improved ball cap, mystery pitch and historic moments add intrigue to the season.
There's a lot going on with baseball, setting up for what should be one of the most memorable summers in recent years. Here's a breakdown of stories to watch for in 2007:
Bonds within reach. Barry Bonds is just 21 home runs short of Hank Aaron's record of 755, and, barring injury, he should break the record.
A historic celebration. April 15 marks the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the Major League Baseball color barrier in 1947. To celebrate the event, the Cleveland Indians will play the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals in a Civil Rights Game on March 31 (on ESPN, 5:30 p.m. ET). Earlier that day, ESPN also will broadcast a documentary on Robinson, which was produced by Spike Lee.
Wearing it well. Baseball is introducing its new official cap, made of polyester, to replace the traditional wool one. The caps are designed to absorb sweat better. Recall that in the NBA, a newly designed ball from Spalding was roundly slammed by players earlier this season. But so far, baseball players prefer the new cap to the wool version.
Japanese import already a star. Daisuke Matsuzaka is the talk of Boston, with a $52 million contract, a flashy nickname (Dice-K) and a confounding pitch dubbed the gyroball (although Dice-K remains coy about whether his pitch is real or the stuff of legend).
-- Andrew Friedman
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