Are you ready for some MLB Baseball?!
Kickoff to the 2010 Major League Baseball is nearly upon on us which means I’m gearing up for a fantasy baseball draft like the nerd I am. Truth be told though, I wasn’t always a big fan of baseball even though I played it as a young boy. Two reasons come to mind why I wasn’t a big fan. First, I thought America’s pastime was real boring and why would anyone want to watch this while there more entertaining sports on like football and basketball? Second, I wasn’t a very good player over my childhood career. I used to the throw the bat in little league and I would get called out after many warnings. Stupid Umps for ruining my baseball dreams! Anyway, I gave up the glove and bat for other sports like soccer and basketball which I’d like to think I was a decent player and much better at than baseball. Therefore, I would say I didn’t come back to baseball until around 1998/1999. I was invited to my very first fantasy league with a few friends. And to show you how nerdy I am or we are, I still play with half of the same people. Anyway, I did the draft even though I didn’t know many players and left all my baseball knowledge back in 92/93. Needless to say, I did pretty bad my first year. However, I began to watch the game a bit more especially with the McGwire/Sosa saga going on and I watched the Yankees win the world series and naturally jumped on their bandwagon. Ever since then, I’ve been a big fan of MLB.
To get in the spirit of the 2010 season, I’ve listed three baseball kid films. Each one holds a special place in my movie vault. These movies don’t get me real juiced up (no pun intended) like Major League, Field of Dreams or Bull Durham. However, as a former wannabe child star, it’s enough to ignite my inner child interest in the 2010 season which I’m sure will be filled with plenty of compelling stories on and off the field.
The Bad News Bears
We’re talking about the 1976 version. Don’t get me started on that trash Billy Bob Thornton starred in a few years ago. The 1976 version stars film icon Walter Matthau as a pool cleaning beer swelling man who is bribed to coach a little league team. Little does he know, his team is made up of all the rejects who didn’t’ make the other little league teams. Hence the name movie title. The bears are helped by a girl pitcher and a rebellious all around player. Each player has some type of dysfunctional nature to their personality. All those players personalities and throw in the performance by Matthau is brilliantly hilarious. His wise-cracking I don’t give a crap demeanor fits well with his team’s attitude. He rubs off them and vice versa. It’s pretty funny watching it now because nowadays, language and beer drinking by a little league coach is not allowed.
The Sandlot
Nicknames like Smalls, Ham, Squints, Yeah Yeah, should be all that you need to know that this movie is a baseball classic. Perhaps not at the top of the list, but certainly in the discussion. Benny, the complete baseball player, befriends Smalls, who is new in town and invites him into his little baseball clan. The problem is Smalls doesn’t know how to play baseball and embarrasses himself by throwing like a “girl.” With the help of Benny, he masters throwing and catching and is eventually accepted by the others. One day and without a ball, Smalls felt he needed to keep the game going so he stole his step-dads signed baseball by the legendary Babe Ruth, perhaps the best baseball player of all time. Crazy, right? First pitch is a home run into the yard of a supposed human eating dog. I know what it sounds like, but it’s not a monster movie. These kids are so obsessed with the baseball legend that they feel compelled risk their lives and get the ball back. They go through several hilarious rescue attempts and I won’t reveal what happens in cased you haven’t seen it. You need to see it. Now. The fact that the ball is signed by Ruth who is America’s pastime greatest icon enhances this film incredibly. I’m not so sure kids today would try to get the ball back if the ball was signed by one of today’s stars.
Rookie of the Year
This was just a silly fun movie. A piss poor baseball player kid slips on a ball and breaks his arm. Weeks later at a Cubs game and “healed” from this injury, the once piss poor baseball player kid throws back a HR of the opposite team. Here is the catch, he throws it all the way from the center field bleachers to the catchers mitt! WTF?! Did he just do that?! The Cubs make him a pitcher despite his age. After a couple struggling outings and under the expertise of his favorite pitcher, the kid becomes an in-hittable pitcher and goes on a fun ride. Obviously Rookie of the Year is incredibly unbelievable literally, it’s one of those films you have to laugh at especially when it stars the Chicago Cubs as a team so desperate they have to hire a kid.
Chime in, do you have a baseball kid film that you would like to share?
