Category Archives: Minor League Baseball

Baseball Movies, Durham Bulls, Minor League Baseball

Totally Subjective Top 10 List of Baseball Movies: Number 1

Editor’s Note: In the spirit of counting down to the start of the Major League Baseball season, over the past two weeks we here at Triple B have presented our completely subjective ranking of the Top 10 Baseball Movies. Today we look at number 1 on the list.

After two weeks of counting, we have reached the ninth inning of our countdown and can reveal the top movie on the completely subjective Triple B Top 10 Baseball Movies list. The number one movie is Bull Durham.

While Bull Durham enjoyed modest success during its theatrical run, it gained wider popularity in the years following to the point that celebrating the quarter century mark since it was released is kind of a big deal.

The number 1 movie on the Triple B totally subjective top 10 countdown of baseball movies is For Love of the Game starring Kevin Costner. Photo R. Anderson
The number 1 movie on the Triple B totally subjective top 10 countdown of baseball movies is For Love of the Game starring Kevin Costner.
Photo R. Anderson

While each of the sides of the Kevin Costner Baseball Triangle are good in their own ways, and each were ranked on our countdown (For Love of the Game #8, and Field of Dreams #2), I have always identified more with the comedy infused Durham.

I suppose Bull Durham resonates with me so well because, while I was never a Minor League Baseball player, I was very much a Minor League Baseball fan and was attending games around the same time that the movie came out.

So, the movie showed me the parts of Minor League life that I didn’t see from my view in the stands.

The movie also provided several concepts that I use even today as part of my daily life.

The concept of creating your own rain delay when the grind gets to tough and you just need a day to catch your breath is a theme that I have embraced from the movie. While I have never turned on the sprinklers in the office, I have certainly found ways to give everyone a rain day here and there.

The movie also provided many timeless quotes with some of them being appropriate for repeating and some best left to the professionals.

In that respect, the current members of the Durham Bulls, the real-life team that inspired the team in the movie, made a hilarious video reenacting some of the crazier lines from the film last year to honor the 25th anniversary of the movie’s release. What makes the video of the players recreating the lines so funny, and perhaps makes the rest of us feel a little old, is the fact that many of the players were not alive when the movie first came out.

Another interesting aspect of the real life Durham Bulls, is that they serve as the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays who were 10 years away from existing at the time of the film’s release. As a bit of trivia, the Bulls were a Single-A affiliate at the time the movie was made and were owned by one of the filmmakers.

But enough about things that weren’t around when the movie came out. It is time to focus on something highlighted in the movie that is no longer around.

In the movie and in real life, Max Patkin was the Clown Prince of Baseball. For over 50 years Patkin went to Minor League ballparks across the country and Canada performing his baseball clown act.

I was fortunate enough to see Patkin perform during an Orlando Sun Rays game at Tinker Field in Orlando, FL. Patkin’s act was shown in several scenes. Patkin even got to dance with the leading lady later in the movie.

While it was clear that Patkin was closer to the end of his performing career than the beginning by the time Bull Durham came out it, to this day when I watch his performance scenes it is like I am right there watching him in person and trying to avoid getting sprayed by his water trick.

Although he died in 1999, Patkin will forever live on in his scenes from Bull Durham. That is both a testament to the man himself and to the filmmakers for recognizing the important role he played in conveying the essence of Minor League Baseball.

Another staple of both the movie and Minor League Baseball in general is road trips on a bus. Unlike the Major League players who travel in first class chartered planes, the Minor League players arrive by bus for all of their road trips.

When Michael Jordan tried to make it as a baseball player in the late 80′s stories circulated about “his Airness” buying a luxury bus for the Birmingham Barons to use. Still, despite the “luxury” bus features it is hard to picture Air Jordan traveling through the cities of the Southern League in a bus.

As for the bus that was used in the movie, that was purchased by a man named Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt is someone who knows a thing or two about motorized vehicles.

While Bull Durham has stood the test of time for 25 years, every once in a while a rumor surfaces about a potential sequel being made. Sequels can certainly be tricky business as few ever really are as good as the first or meet the lofty expectations set for them.

But, even with all of that being said, I would still watch a sequel to Bull Durham. Do I think it could ever be as good as the first movie? Probably not. But, it does not have to be as good as the first movie. It just needs to help show where the characters ended up some 25 years after we left them on the porch and field.

I have my own ideas about what happened to the characters. So, if a sequel is never made, I will still carry on my version of the story in my head. But it would be nice to see the cast get back together for one more trip around the bases.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I am off to swing for the fences and see if I can hit the bull to win a steak. And remember “This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.”

Copyright 2014 R. Anderson

Grapefruit League, Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball, Spring Training, Tampa Bay Rays

Tinker Field’s Fate Likely Sealed by Progress

The other day I learned some troubling news about an old friend.

When I was growing up, this friend and I shared many adventures during the spring and summer months with family and friends.

Sadly, time and neglect have finally taken their toll on my good friend, Tinker Field, and at the ripe age of 91 years old he is facing extinction.

Tinker Field, my good friend, is a ballpark in Orlando, FL that I have written about many times. In fact, one of the very first columns I ever wrote was related to Tinker Field.

It was at Tinker Field that I saw most of my professional baseball games during the 20th Century.

From Spring Training for Major League Baseball, to full seasons of Minor League Baseball, the quaint little ballpark in the shadow of the Citrus Bowl was a unique venue where a who’s who of baseball players played.

In the late 80's and early 90's I saw quite a few Southern League games at historic Tinker Field. Photo R. Anderson
In the late 80’s and early 90’s I saw quite a few Southern League games at historic Tinker Field.
Photo R. Anderson

Think of almost any baseball player from the 20th Century, and odds are pretty good that they stepped foot on the infield grass of Tinker Field at one time or another.

Historic moments at Tinker Field were not limited to just baseball, however. Martin Luther King, Jr. even spoke once at Tinker Field.

The last professional affiliated baseball at Tinker Field occurred in 1999 with the Orlando Rays, who were the Double-A farm team for the Tampa Bay Rays.

While the Orlando Rays were the last of the Southern League teams to call Tinker Field home, they certainly weren’t the only ones.

The Orlando Twins, Orlando Cubs and Orlando Sun Rays were among the many teams to call Tinker Field home.

The Orlando Juice of the Senior Professional Baseball Association even spent a season in the shadow of the Citrus Bowl.

Eventually, it was the shadowy neighbor looming over right field that signed Tinker Field’s death warrant.

A massive expansion is planned for the Citrus Bowl that will greatly widen its footprint. Unfortunately, this widening will creep into right field to the point that Tinker Field can no longer function as a baseball field, due to an outfield depth that would make a Little Leaguer feel like Barry Bonds sending everything he hits over the fence.

So, despite being declared a national historic site, Tinker Field will likely soon meet the fate of many ballparks before it and be torn down in the name of progress.

There is still a small glimmer of hope that the ballpark structure can be saved. There are petitions and social media campaigns already in full swing.

In the event that cries from the Tinker fans fall on deaf ears, a halfhearted attempt to appease fans who will miss the ballpark by creating a new Tinker Field a few hundred yards away on the site of a current softball field has been floated by local officials.

Still, despite calling the new ballpark Tinker Field, there will never be another Tinker Field and every effort should be made to preserve the historic grandstand and related facilities.

If the wrecking ball does come, Tinker Field will become the third ballpark where I attended games at to be torn down. Despite missing Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, and Baseball City Stadium in Haines City, Florida, the loss of Tinker Field hits the hardest.

Tinker Field was where my mom and I spent many afternoons and evenings together watching games, despite it being in a part of town where one did not want to really venture too far away from the safety of the ballpark lights.

This ticket stub allowed me to meet one of my baseball heroes, Earl Weaver, along the third base line of Tinker Field.
This ticket stub allowed me to meet one of my baseball heroes, Earl Weaver, along the third base line of Tinker Field.

Tinker Field was also where I walked onto the field before an Orlando Juice game and met the late Earl Weaver on the third base line.

For a life-long Baltimore Orioles fan like myself, spending a few minutes chatting with the “Earl of Baltimore” on a baseball diamond was like my own Field of Dreams moment.

I met many other players at Tinker Field through the years with some of them making it to the Majors and others relegated to a career of being bused from game to game in the Minor Leagues.

Although I saw numerous Spring Training games at Tinker Field, it was Minor League Baseball that really grabbed my attention and stoked the desires of younger me to work in sports promotions at a ballpark.

During our trips to Tinker Field my mom and I were often joined for a few innings by team president Pat Williams, who was also the General Manager of the Orlando Magic at the time, and I used to think how cool it would be to be a team executive getting paid to watch baseball.

I have yet to fully realize that dream of spending all of my summer nights as a Minor League Baseball employee but I may yet before all is said and done and when I do it will be because of those nights at Tinker Field.

I last visited Tinker Field in 1999 during a University of Central Florida football game. At the time, UCF played at the Citrus Bowl; since it did not have a stadium of its own yet.

During a pregame tailgate, I learned that the souvenir stand at Tinker Field was open, since the Rays were moving to a ballpark at Walt Disney World and the team was selling all of their merchandise to avoid moving it to the new facility.

During my last visit to Tinker Field in 1999 I was fitted by sight for this hat. Sadly, the hat no longer fits but the memory of getting it remains as vivid as ever. Photo R. Anderson
During my last visit to Tinker Field in 1999 I was fitted by sight for this hat. Sadly, the hat no longer fits but the memory of getting it remains as vivid as ever.
Photo R. Anderson

I ended up getting an Orlando Rays fitted cap. To this day, I am amazed that the seasoned ballpark employee correctly guessed my hat size just by looking at me.

I am sure the cap vendor had done the same thing thousands of times but it was fascinating to me that he had that skill.

I don’t know what happened to that vendor but I like to think he lived out his remaining years comfortably after his days at the ballpark were over randomly telling people on the street how big their heads were.

I am also amazed that in the years since my already large head grew to the point where I can no longer comfortably wear the fitted wool cap.

In the end, the Orlando Rays’ time at Walt Disney World was short lived and the team moved to Montgomery, Alabama and became known as the Biscuits.

To this day, there are still no Minor League Baseball teams in Orlando making the decision to tear down a nearly 100 year old Ballpark an easier pill to swallow for some.

Others point to the peeling paint and overworked plumbing as reasons that it is best to raze the ballpark instead of spending money to preserve it and bring it up to current code.

I knew that the day would come when Tinker Field would be torn down in the name of progress. I had hoped that the day was further into the future, but I knew deep down that people in government do not seem to always value their history and often times the bulldozer wins out over preserving the past.

In Houston, people are dealing with a similar potential loss of a treasured sports fixture as the pending demolition of the Astrodome seems all but certain.

In Atlanta, fans of the Braves of preparing for the loss of 20-year-old Turner Field in the name of progress.

A few years back, even Yankee Stadium, of Babe Ruth fame, was torn down. So, I know that the loss of Tinker Field is not totally out of line with the rest of the world of sports, but it is still sad day.

Even though the Astrodome, Yankee Stadium, and Turner Field cannot compete with the intimacy of Tinker Field, fans of those venues are justified in feeling their loss just as strongly.

But as I have said before, the loss of the physical building, while difficult, does not take away the memories that occurred in those facilities.

I can close my eyes and still picture Tinker Field the way I remember it. I prefer to think of it like it was and not like the neglected facility it became.

I guess the morale of the story is to treasure your brick and mortar ballparks while you can while building up memories that can last long after the ballparks are gone.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some ballpark preservation petitions to sign.

Copyright 2014 R. Anderson

Durham Bulls, Houston Astros, Major League Baseball, Texas Rangers

Astros and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Game

My affinity for the movie Bull Durham is well known.

In fact, I have been known to quote the movie quite frequently as there seem to be quotes that fit almost any occasion in life.

So while I was watching Monday night’s debacle of a game between the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers there were many Bull Durham lines that came to mind as the Double-A talent level Astros players with the big hearts and limited talent fell victim to the much more talented and much more Major League Baseball level Texas Rangers.

Bull Durham is one of my favorite movies. The Houston Astros are spending the season reenacting many of the scenes from the movie, and not in the good way. Photo R. Anderson
Bull Durham is one of my favorite movies. The Houston Astros are spending the season reenacting many of the scenes from the movie, and not in the good way.
Photo R. Anderson

One line from Bull Durham that kept coming to mind as I watched the wheels fall off for the Astros once again was, “You guys. You lollygag the ball around the infield. You lollygag your way down to first. You lollygag in and out of the dugout. You know what that makes you?”

And of course anyone who has seen the movie knows that the answer is lollygaggers.

The Astros have found ways to make a very simple game of throw and catch anything but simple the past few seasons as they lollygag through their games. Of course this year they look like doctoral students in the study of ways to lollygag during ballgames.

Quite frankly, each game tends to lead itself to even more absurd ways to lose. Balls falling between three outfielders? Check. An overworked staff of pitchers giving up more leads than a reporter on deadline? Check.

The list goes on and on with the creative ways that the Astros have found to lose this year. But Monday night seemed to find new levels on the losing scale.

In addition to the game reminding me of some scenes from Bull Durham, it also harkened back to some bedtime stories that my mom used to read to me.

One of those books in particular came to mind Monday night as I was watching the Astros go through yet another epic fail. That book was Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which was written by Judith Viorst and illustrated by Ray Cruz.

In the book, as the title suggests, Alexander has a bad day.

The way the Astros' season has gone I wouldn't be surprised if the song Bad Day is on a constant loop in the clubhouse. Photo R. Anderson
The way the Astros’ season has gone I wouldn’t be surprised if the song Bad Day is on a constant loop in the clubhouse.
Photo R. Anderson

The book came out in 1972 which was long before the days immortalized in Daniel Powter’s one hit wonder song Bad Day.

So, for the more musically minded readers one can replace the imagery of the printed page with the melodies of song if they wish.

Whichever way works the fact remains the Astros had a very bad day, err night Monday.

As part of the bad night the Astros gave up 11 runs in the third inning with all nine Rangers players in the batting order scoring at least one run during the third inning scoring marathon.

Then in the fourth inning the Astros lost their catcher to concussion like symptoms. Normally when that occurs the backup catcher is rushed into the game since most squads carry two catchers on the active roster for situations like this.

Of course when you are using your other catcher as the designated hitter, as the Astros were doing, a little rule goes into effect where they cannot go behind the plate without a team being forced to use a pitcher at DH to replace them.

So with the options limited at catcher, the Astros turned to their emergency catcher, Jake Elmore. It is not like Elmore had never caught before. The announcers on the broadcast were very quick to point out that Elmore once caught an inning in a Double-A game in Mobile, Alabama a few years back.

To his credit, Elmore did a good job behind the plate. Of course he was helped by the fact that the Rangers were not trying to steal any bases with such a sizable lead.

At least the hats are sharp for the Astros to make up for some of the less than sharp play on the field. Photo R. Anderson
At least the hats are sharp for the Astros to make up for some of the less than sharp play on the field.
Photo R. Anderson

The night for Elmore got even weirder in the eighth inning when he was called upon to pitch since it was determined that with the game so out of reach the Astros would just give the rest of the bullpen the night off.

Elmore needed only 11 pitches to get three outs and proved to be the most productive pitcher of the night for the Astros. Not bad for a guy making his Major League debut as both a pitcher and a catcher.

While there have certainly been games where infielders have been called on to pitch these are usually extra-inning games when the bullpens have been completely depleted. Elmore became only the 14th person to be both a catcher and pitcher in the same game.

The Astros keep preaching rebuilding and patience but when they decide to completely rest an ineffective bullpen in favor of an infielder who has never pitched in a Major League Game and he makes it look easier to get batters out than the bulk of the full time pitchers, there is definitely something horribly wrong and will certainly test the patience of Job.

So, it is likely that there will be many more terrible, horrible, no good, very bad games for the Astros this year. And the trend will likely continue for several years to come. There is no quick fix for a team that does not want to spend money on talented players.

Of course, there are players like Jake Elmore that have the talent and the heart to be Major League ballplayers for the Astros they just aren’t being given the supporting cast to be successful and are left feeling like they woke up with gum in their hair day after day after day.

Now if you’ll excuse me, there is a certain book from my childhood that I think I will pull off of the shelf and read.

Copyright 2013 R. Anderson

Minor League Baseball

Cleansing the Web One Viral Video at a Time

Since Al Gore gave us the internet so many years back it has brought us many things.

Granted, I know that Al Gore did not invent the internet but who am I to burst the man’s bubble since he so famously said that he did?

While for the most part the internet is a positive thing there are certainly many negative aspects to avoid while navigating along the information super highway. And while the internet is certainly not going anywhere it is up to each of us to do our part to ensure that is kept pristine for future generations.

According to an often repeated quote, former vice president turned winner of the 2000 popular vote in presidential election, Al Gore invented the internet. If that were true he could be blamed for all that is bad and praised for all that is good on the internet.
According to an often repeated quote, former vice president turned winner of the 2000 popular vote in presidential election, Al Gore invented the internet. If that were true he could be blamed for all that is bad and praised for all that is good on the internet.

Think of the internet as a more visited National Park with each of us acting as Park Rangers to safe guard it if you will.

So, fellow internet Park Rangers the time has come to pull the weeds known as viral videos.

Just the very name makes it sound like something in need of a serious dose of antibiotic. Of course like most virus strains viral videos have morphed through the years from videos of cats playing the piano into something far more deadly.

While a viral video was once some that just organically happened from friends sharing a video over and over again it has now become a marketing tool with companies trying to “create” the next viral sensation in their marketing lab.

To me this is where the viral video went wrong and needs to be eradicated. By “creating” a viral video with the express purpose of becoming viral one takes out the entire accidental discovery of previous viral videos.

And now with all of the created video viruses out there I am now even more skeptical than usual when it comes to watching videos on the web. Of course that added skepticism is not entirely a bad thing.

The other day I was sent a link from a coworker regarding a wedding proposal gone wrong at a Minor League Baseball game in Connecticut. In the video a man asks a woman to marry him, as ballpark proposals often start, and then instead of her saying yes which occurs 99 percent of the time, she says no to the utter dismay of the assembled crowd in the stands.

Okay, so one could just leave it at that and think that the guy probably should have made sure that she was into the idea of marriage before popping the question in front of 5,500 strangers at a Double-A ballpark.

The rise in faked viral videos has left my computer and me feeling a bit ill lately. Photo R. Anderson
The rise in faked viral videos has left my computer and me feeling a bit ill lately.
Photo R. Anderson

The video did not end there as the woman who had seemingly broken the man’s heart runs away into the stands.

Again, one could argue that she was embarrassed from the experience and wanted to get off of the field as quickly as possible. But then the man runs off of the field as well but instead of chasing after her he runs into the home dugout and then down the tunnel into the clubhouse.

This of course threw up huge red flags for me and I told my coworker that the video was definitely staged since no professional sports franchise would let an average fan just run down the tunnel into their clubhouse and/or locker room.

Sure enough the next day it was revealed that the video was as fake as a $4 bill and that the man and woman were members of the team’s marketing staff.

While the video certainly drew attention to the fact that the Minnesota Twins have a Double-A affiliate in Connecticut it certainly can’t make the parent club happy that the marketing staff is going around faking marriage proposals for the sake of publicity.

Then again there is that old saying about all publicity being good publicity.

As a side note, having grown up watching the Orlando Twins when they were the Double-A Affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, I had often wondered where they went after leaving Tinker Field and thanks to the viral video I now know.

There are of course other examples of fake videos making the rounds from NASCAR drivers in disguise as people on test drives, etc.

Usually there are elements in the videos that are so obviously staged that it is easy for me to tell that the videos are fake.

In the instance of the Jeff Gordon in disguise video there are tons of red flags to show that the video is fake so they are not really deceiving the consumer since anyone with have a mind should see right through it.

The danger becomes when consumers miss the warning signs and consider the videos real. While advertisers have been deceiving customers for some degree to sell their products for years it seems like we are entering a whole new level of deception where the lines between reality and fantasy get blurrier by the day.

The internet will never be free of the viral video outbreak but hopefully with more discerning eyes consumers will not fall into their trap and will instead focus their attention on other things like those cats playing piano.

And to the next Minor League Baseball team wanting to make a name for itself through a video sensation history is full of so many other promotion ideas that don’t begin with deceiving the paying customers in the stands in the name of viral video infamy.

Now if you’ll excuse me, all of this talk of viral videos has me feeling like I should check my temperature to make sure that I didn’t catch anything.

Copyright 2013 R. Anderson

Baseball Movies, Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball

Baseball on the Silver Screen Offers Something for Everyone

Tomorrow, marks the DVD release of the movie 42 about Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier and all of the issues that he faced as a result of that.

I have previously written about the movie and Jackie Robinson and will be adding the movie to my collection of baseball movies sometime this week.

The pending addition of another movie into my growing collection of films about baseball got me thinking about just how many films there are about baseball.

My baseball film collection is modest by most standards I would think but I am also highly particular about which movies get added to it. I am the same way about my collection of books about baseball believing firmly in the quality of quantity approach.

While I doubt that any one person could collect every single movie about baseball, nor do I think they should try, there are definitely movies that capture each element of the game and should be part of any collection of baseball movies.

Hundreds if not thousands of movies have been made about the game of baseball through the years. Photo R. Anderson
Hundreds if not thousands of movies have been made about the game of baseball through the years.
Photo R. Anderson

Just taking into account the Kevin Costner Baseball trilogy one is exposed to the humor that comes from Bull Durham, the emotional Field of Dreams, and the tale of a pitcher holding on for one more perfect moment in For Love of the Game.

Personally I would love to see Kevin Costner take on another baseball role as a manager or some other area where a former player struggles with life once the fans stop cheering their name. But it appears that wish will need to wait as Costner seems content with playing the earthly dad to Superman.

So moving away from the Kevin Costner movies about baseball there are the films with a certain fantasy element to them. For these movies one can usually look at the Walt Disney vault for films like Angels in the Outfield.

Of course making a movie about a team that they owned was sheer marketing genius by the Mouse House. But, then again you don’t get to become as big as the Walt Disney Company without being good at business.

While I never really bought into the fantasy elements of Angels in the Outfield, there was one Disney baseball movie deemed worthy to join my collection and that movie was the Rookie. For those who may not be aware of that particular film it follows the real-life story of a Texas high school baseball coach turned relief pitcher for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

The real life story of a Texas teacher turned Major League pitcher portrayed in the Rookie is one of the feel good movies about baseball. Photo R. Anderson
The real life story of a Texas teacher turned Major League pitcher portrayed in the Rookie is one of the feel good movies about baseball.
Photo R. Anderson

As a fan of the Devil Rays turned just plain Rays, I try to soak up as much of the team’s history as possible. Granted there are only about 15 years of history so far but I have lived each one of those years with the team and can remember covering the announcement of their birth into the league so I guess you could say they hold an extra special place in my heart.

For those looking for more on the real life stories of baseball one can really do no wrong by curling up on the coach and watching Ken Burns’ documentary Baseball and his followup Baseball: The 10th Inning which covered changes made in the time since the first documentary was released.

Burns is arguably one of the leading documentations of this era and his take on the history of baseball is definitely one for the ages.

Jackie Robinson is not the only player to get the big screen biography treatment. Baseball fans can catch movies with Tommy Lee Jones as Ty Cobb and John Goodman as Babe Ruth among others.

Of course not everything about baseball movies should be about dry stats and real life achievements and player biographies.

For a pure historical telling of baseball, warts and all, one should not miss the Ken Burns take on the subject. Photo R. Anderson
For a pure historical telling of baseball, warts and all, one should not miss the Ken Burns take on the subject.
Photo R. Anderson

Sometimes a baseball movie should just be about pure unadulterated humor. For the strict humor baseball movies I tend to go towards the Major League films. Add to the equation that Charlie “Tiger Blood” Sheen did all of his own pitching in the film and you have the makings of a cinematic classic.

For more Sheen on the diamond one can catch Eight Men Out, a very well done look at the Chicago Black Sox scandal.

Of course there is also the whole sub genre of baseball films turned into romantic comedies. While I tend to steer clear of most “chick flicks” there have been times when the baseball elements of a romcom have caused me to go to the theater and see the movies. Fever Pitch was one such movie as was Summer Catch. But as a rule I prefer that the only sap in my baseball movies comes from the pine tar on the bats.

So there is a look at baseball through the cinematic lens. There are bound to be films that I have left out and I am sure each individual looks for something different in terms of what makes a good baseball film to them. So that is likely one of the reasons there are so many films about baseball to begin with.

Of course nothing quite captures baseball like an actual seat at the ballpark whether it be at the Little League level or all the way up to the major Leagues. Baseball is simply better live. But during those 5-6 months of the year when there isn’t any live baseball to go see movies about baseball can certainly help scratch the itch between the crowning of the World Series champion and the time players report to Spring Training.

Now if you’ll excuse me I need to make some room on my shelf for another baseball movie.

Copyright 2013 R. Anderson