Baseball + Movies= Good times

Sports movies are great entertainment. From Remember the Titans to Slap Shot sports movies get the juices flowing and make me want to go out and participate in said sport. Since baseball is my favorite sport, I love baseball movies the most. So here are my favorite baseball classics.

1.) 61*-The best baseball movie, because I care about two Yankees (Thomas Jane's best work as Mickey Mantle and Barry Pepper's portrayal of Roger Maris is just behind his role in Saving Private Ryan and he looks a lot like Maris) and I hate the Yankees. Billy Crystal directs and as Paul Maholm showed him, baseball is no laughing matter.
2.)A League of Their Own-"I haven't got ballplayers, I've got girls." Tom Hanks makes this movie great, Geena Davis, Madonna, Lori Petty and Rosie O'Donnell are all convincing enough as WWII baseball star's in a women's league. Apparently some girl that graduated with my mom is an extra in this film, but who knows.
3.)Sugar-MLB the Show has a feature called road to the show. This movie is road to the show Dominican style as it follows as Dominican baseball player up the ranks of baseball before his career fizzles out.
4.)Field of Dreams-"If you build it, they will come" Did you know the baseball field from this movie is up for sale? but I digress. Costner returns to baseball and other adventures including kidnapping James Earl Jones.
5.)The Natural-Robert Redford destroys some lights with that sweet swing and it has a hint of film noir to it (not a lot, just a hint) Overall good stuff.
6.)The Bad News Bears (1976)-Walter Matthau is great as a drunk ball coach in charge of a little league team. Also this starts of the career of Jackie Earl Haley.
7.)The Pride of the Yankees-Gary Cooper takes on Gehrig the man and leads us up to that final speech "Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth"
8.)Major League-The most quotable of the baseball films, Major Leauge is comedy gold thanks to Bob Uecker as Harry Doyle-"In case you haven't noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven't, the Indians have managed to win a few here and there, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar."
9.)Bull Durham-It took me a second time to really enjoy this movie. Kevin Costner reminds us the golden rules of baseball. "Stop trying to strike everyone out. Strike outs are fascist, Throw some ground balls, they're more democratic."
10.)Major League 2-"The Indians have a runner, I think I'll wet my pants." Harry Doyle is back, Charlie Sheen is back...Wesley Snipes is not. This movie holds a strange place in my heart, because I actually saw it before the first movie, because I was not allowed to watch R rated movies...sooooooooo
11.)Eight Men Out-The White Sox are cheaters, I just wish that the whole franchise would have been banned from baseball not the eight players.
12.)Cobb-Cobb was an asshole. Tommy Lee Jones made Cobb an even bigger asshole.
13.) Rookie of the Year-I've seen this movie more than any of the movies above combined. I have no reason for this, but I really enjoy this movie.

14.)Beer League*(really about softball)
15.) Fever Pitch (not great)
16.) Bad News Bears (2005) (not as good as the first)
17.)The Fan (De Niro is crazy and I believe Del Torro would make a great baseball player)
18.)Angels in the Outfield (1994) (Is does start at one and you're a jackass)
19.) The Sandlot (This movie suffers because of the corniest ending in the history of sports films. I hate that ending so much it can't break into my favorite baseball films)
20.)The Benchwarmers (stupid)
21.)Mr. 3000 (soooooo stupid)
22.) The Rookie (boring)
23.)Hardball (corny)
24.)The Babe (boring)
25.)Little Big League (I remember nothing about this movie except Night Nurses from New Jersey.)
26.)Mr. Baseball (Tom Selleck reminds me of my dad...Tom Selleck references mustache rides in this film. Therefore my dad references mustache rides in this film...needless to say...disturbing)
27.) Major League III (awful)
28.)The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training-this is bar none the worst baseball movie in the history of baseball movies. Why would anyone want to meet the 1977 Houston Astros? Who would let there kids drive all the way to Texas without at least one other parent chaperone? What happened to half the team. When did Tanner become a softy for Lupus? Who greenlit this movie?

Other notable baseball moments in film
Charlie Brown
Baseketball?
Naked Gun-funniest part of that movie is the last 1/2 hour of that movie.