Magic article. Dodgers fan here from the UK and a baseball fan since the first broadcasts live in the early(ish) 1990's. Major League 1/2, Eight Men Out (a particular favourite) and Moneyball for me, but then we have to discuss Field of Dreams, a father and son tale that isn't really about baseball and a movie I LOVE but can't watch anymore as I'm in pieces at the first mention or even hint at a much missed Dad. I've written at length on this within an article here (My Dad in a Field of Dreams) and so I'll only add the obvious: "Hey Dad, you wanna have a catch?" just destroys me. A limey with no connection to baseball. Just a familial connection to my dear old Dad. Love the MLB Field of Dreams games. Even I can turn off my cynicism to enjoy the schmaltz! Great article I'll re-read during the innings breaks in the upcoming Dodgers game! Good luck to you.
Hi Stephen, two dead parents here, so I get it, trust me, I do. Do feel free to include a link to your article here, if you'd like to. Thanks for reading, my friend; I'm glad to hear it resonated with you.
Two dead parents here too! My dear old Mum was more of a cricket fan, hence my obsession for this quintessential English game. Here's my article and if time permits sometime, I hope you enjoy it
I haven't seen many of the movies on that list, bit the ones I have, I remember fondly. I remember feeling that sense of comminuted you mention at the end. There's an X-Files episode called The Unnatural (Season 6, Episode 19) that is one of my favourites, and I think captures this same feeling, in a supernatural sorta way.
Field of Dreams has been one of my very favourite films ever since I first saw it at 15. I know nothing about baseball but I think this film taps into an almost universal nostalgia for a simpler time. It never fails to make me cry but also functions as a comfort blanket.
I haven’t seen many of the later films on this list but I remember feeling in 88/ 89 that baseball films were everywhere. I enjoyed 8 Men Out too, particularly because of its obvious links to Field Of Dreams.
MONEYBALL is one of the greatest baseball films ever made, in my book. But it's also just a great film. I really don't understand how someone couldn't love it.
Anyone who doesn't shed tears at the climax of "The Natural," when Roy Hobbs (Redford) hits the ball and it smashes into the scoreboard, causing fireworks to rain down on him as he makes his home run, has no soul.
I never got into the sport itself no matter how many Braves games my dad dragged me to as a kid with the bribe of a sundae in an upside down plastic helmet- it was always too hot and loud and boring for me. Which makes it so weird how much I freaking LOVE baseball movies. I think about FIELD OF DREAMS on a regular basis, quote “there’s no crying in baseball” from A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN for any complaint my kids dish out, get chills over THE NATURAL and genuinely adore ANGELS IN THE OUTFIELD. And it was slightly earlier, but BAD NEWS BEARS (even though it’s quite scandalous by today’s standards and made me feel like a horrible parent when I played it for my kids) was one of my absolute favorite films as a kid. BULL DURHAM taught me more about raw sexuality than baseball and I couldn’t get enough of it as a young adult. I wish there could be a resurgence. I miss them. Maybe you could take your experiences with your mom working there and your love of the game and write one for us! I gotta say, the Banana League is one of my favorite things on Instagram and I think I’d probably love to see one of their games live… maybe there’s a movie in the birth of that kind of entertainment baseball…
A network approached me about a minor league series a while back, sort of a BULL DURHAM in the midwest, and every time we got on Zoom to dig into it, they tried to tell me all the reasons there wouldn't be an audience for it because nobody cares about baseball anymore. It was...so weird. They eventually convinced me I didn't want to work with them, but not that nobody cares about baseball anymore - except, apparently, you, Kara - ha!
For baseball movie enthusiasts like yourself, I highly recommend Carson Lund’s pitch-perfect debut, “Eephus.” It chronicles the last game of an amateur New England baseball league before its stadium is demolished for a school. Spanning a long, reflective day, the film captures the end of a beloved era and the difficulty of releasing associated memories. “Eephus” transports you to a place that transcends space and time in an experience that engulfs you in its magnetic charm. It’s arguably one of last year’s most underrated films. Next month, I’ll include it in the second installment of my “Most Overlooked Films From 2025” series.
This was a fantastic read. As someone whose whole newsletter is about sports movies, I wish we had a lot more modern baseball movies too. I’m actually amazed that we never got a movie about the 2016 Cubs run and World Series, for example. I’ve heard that Eephus (2025) is great, but I’ve not been able to see it yet.
I haven't seen EEPHUS either, James. Given the overlapping subject matter, please feel free to tell my readers more about your Substack and maybe share a link to an article you feel especially proud of.
Thanks, Cole. The aim of the newsletter is to ultimately review every movie tagged as ‘sport’ on IMDb. I review a new movie every Friday. In future, I’ll also be looking to review sports-themed tv shows, but every Friday will always be a new sports movie review. There’s plenty out there to keep me going for some time! :)
I tried to have a bit of fun with the format of the newsletter. The first part is the pre-game, where I cover any housekeeping, do an intro and catch up etc. Then we have the first half, which is the movie review. Then it’s halftime, where I go off topic and discuss what non-sports stuff I’ve been watching or share any trailers etc for movies I’m looking forward to - anything off topic really. After that we go to the second half, where I dish out awards for this week’s movie - best scene, best line, trivia etc etc. Finally we end on the post-game, where I reveal the next movie, cover off anything else etc.
Basically, I love sports, I love movies and I love sports movies 😊
I love Moneyball because it fits well with my systems thinking approach to life after a lifetime playing war games (I once had the complete Stratomatic Baseball Game with all the player card sets then available but gave it away because it would not have left me any time to actually have a life). I also like Trouble With the Curve which doesn’t have a lot of baseball in it but offers appreciation for people who actually look at the whole and don’t get distracted by the parts of the game. I think I’ve seen every pic on your list as well as many of the old B&W Hollywood baseball pics.
I will bookmark and have a read at the weekend. The interesting question that occurred to me was also ‘what are the things which make / made America great?’
For the top three I might list
-the boundless optimism and enthusiasm
-the glamour and pizazz (nothing says glamour quite as much as old school Hollywood did (more so than now)
-how everything American was always bigger and shinier than from somewhere else.
Curious to know what others would list. Imagine freedom might be one - or the chance to succeed whatever your beginnings (something which is getting harder now).
I'm going to leave this debate for others to participate in, if only because my relationship with the United States is in a very terrible place right now. I'd love to hear other thoughts, though!
Lovely comment. I realized how much I still loved baseball when my nephew and his wife invited me to go to some games in Pittsfield, MA in the same decade you are talking about. We went to watch the local farm team, the Pittsfield Mets, quite a few times. Then we all went over to Boston to watch the Red Sox play. It was so exciting!
When I was growing up, in Armonk, NY, we all played baseball at the lunchtime recess. The girls played softball, the boys played hardball. That’s just what kids did in the 1950s. Gulp down lunch in 15 min. So we could play for a half hour. I was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan in those days, as were all of my friends. We simply hated the Yankees. But when the Dodgers went to L.A., of all the horrid places in the universe, a lot of us just stopped following the sport. I’ve heard Doris Kearns Goodwin say the exact same thing. Maybe in Ken Burns’s documentary? Such a monumental betrayal!
I suppose if I had a team anymore it would be the Sox, but now I live in Chicago. I have a friend here who always has season tickets for the Cubs. Haven’t been to a game yet, but I think about it…
Great stuff. I grew up loving baseball, skipped out for a decade or so, and now I'm back. THE NATURAL gets a viewing nearly once a year as my fantasy baseball season kicks off. Both my fantasy team and my playstation team are named THE SAVOY SPECIALS after Bobby the bat boy's bat. It is a magical game. Being a lifetime Mets fan, Game 6 of the '86 World Series is the zenith of what insanity happens to make baseball the great leveler in team sports.
As an adult I have sadly become a Mariners' fan (feel our sorrow), and as another abysmal season came to an end this year the local sports show had a sound bite (and I paraphrase) that I loved (and sorry I'm not sure whom to attribute this quote), "All team sports, basketball, hockey, football, are based on adrenaline, but baseball is all about tension. It's the one sport that allows you to cut the faces in the crowd and see the joy and dread on their faces as they anticipate what is going to happen next from pitch to pitch."
I think this observation is true. It has space for stories, to slow down and pay attention to moments. Every other sport is moving so rapidly, the ball or puck becomes the subject. In baseball, the people almost always are.
In a previous post, you asked us about movies that were quintessentially American. I absolutely cannot believe I didn't think of any of these great baseball movies!! Perhaps because none of them is considered to be "great art". The Natural is the closest to an art film. They are all very entertaining, and as American as it gets. My favorites are The Natural, Field of Dreams (gorgeous nostalgia), Eight Men Out (an unsentimental, anti-nostalgic look at a famous cheating scandal), Bull Durham (hilarious and sexy), and the feel-good A League of Their Own (just a great popcorn movie). Baseball movies are ready for a comeback!
I tend to to think of THE NATURAL, FIELD OF DREAMS, and BULL DURHAM as all quintessentially American, but I'd suggest BULL DURHAM is high art myself. 99% of scripts ever written don't approach its narrative grace or character work. It's a perfect film.
Magic article. Dodgers fan here from the UK and a baseball fan since the first broadcasts live in the early(ish) 1990's. Major League 1/2, Eight Men Out (a particular favourite) and Moneyball for me, but then we have to discuss Field of Dreams, a father and son tale that isn't really about baseball and a movie I LOVE but can't watch anymore as I'm in pieces at the first mention or even hint at a much missed Dad. I've written at length on this within an article here (My Dad in a Field of Dreams) and so I'll only add the obvious: "Hey Dad, you wanna have a catch?" just destroys me. A limey with no connection to baseball. Just a familial connection to my dear old Dad. Love the MLB Field of Dreams games. Even I can turn off my cynicism to enjoy the schmaltz! Great article I'll re-read during the innings breaks in the upcoming Dodgers game! Good luck to you.
Hi Stephen, two dead parents here, so I get it, trust me, I do. Do feel free to include a link to your article here, if you'd like to. Thanks for reading, my friend; I'm glad to hear it resonated with you.
Two dead parents here too! My dear old Mum was more of a cricket fan, hence my obsession for this quintessential English game. Here's my article and if time permits sometime, I hope you enjoy it
https://open.substack.com/pub/ramblingmusings666/p/my-dad-in-a-field-of-dreams-e0fbe975689a?r=2u7w8q&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I haven't seen many of the movies on that list, bit the ones I have, I remember fondly. I remember feeling that sense of comminuted you mention at the end. There's an X-Files episode called The Unnatural (Season 6, Episode 19) that is one of my favourites, and I think captures this same feeling, in a supernatural sorta way.
I'd completely forgotten about that "X-Files" episode. Thanks for reminding me.
Very welcome. The final scene with Mulder and Scully in that episode lives in my head rent free.
That episode rules sooo much, great mention.
I loved that movie. Even better because it gave one of our daughters the courage to play her heart out.
Field of Dreams has been one of my very favourite films ever since I first saw it at 15. I know nothing about baseball but I think this film taps into an almost universal nostalgia for a simpler time. It never fails to make me cry but also functions as a comfort blanket.
I haven’t seen many of the later films on this list but I remember feeling in 88/ 89 that baseball films were everywhere. I enjoyed 8 Men Out too, particularly because of its obvious links to Field Of Dreams.
I’ve never seen Moneyball. Going to change that.
MONEYBALL is one of the greatest baseball films ever made, in my book. But it's also just a great film. I really don't understand how someone couldn't love it.
Anyone who doesn't shed tears at the climax of "The Natural," when Roy Hobbs (Redford) hits the ball and it smashes into the scoreboard, causing fireworks to rain down on him as he makes his home run, has no soul.
None.
I never got into the sport itself no matter how many Braves games my dad dragged me to as a kid with the bribe of a sundae in an upside down plastic helmet- it was always too hot and loud and boring for me. Which makes it so weird how much I freaking LOVE baseball movies. I think about FIELD OF DREAMS on a regular basis, quote “there’s no crying in baseball” from A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN for any complaint my kids dish out, get chills over THE NATURAL and genuinely adore ANGELS IN THE OUTFIELD. And it was slightly earlier, but BAD NEWS BEARS (even though it’s quite scandalous by today’s standards and made me feel like a horrible parent when I played it for my kids) was one of my absolute favorite films as a kid. BULL DURHAM taught me more about raw sexuality than baseball and I couldn’t get enough of it as a young adult. I wish there could be a resurgence. I miss them. Maybe you could take your experiences with your mom working there and your love of the game and write one for us! I gotta say, the Banana League is one of my favorite things on Instagram and I think I’d probably love to see one of their games live… maybe there’s a movie in the birth of that kind of entertainment baseball…
A network approached me about a minor league series a while back, sort of a BULL DURHAM in the midwest, and every time we got on Zoom to dig into it, they tried to tell me all the reasons there wouldn't be an audience for it because nobody cares about baseball anymore. It was...so weird. They eventually convinced me I didn't want to work with them, but not that nobody cares about baseball anymore - except, apparently, you, Kara - ha!
For baseball movie enthusiasts like yourself, I highly recommend Carson Lund’s pitch-perfect debut, “Eephus.” It chronicles the last game of an amateur New England baseball league before its stadium is demolished for a school. Spanning a long, reflective day, the film captures the end of a beloved era and the difficulty of releasing associated memories. “Eephus” transports you to a place that transcends space and time in an experience that engulfs you in its magnetic charm. It’s arguably one of last year’s most underrated films. Next month, I’ll include it in the second installment of my “Most Overlooked Films From 2025” series.
Ooh, thanks for this tip, Robin!
Personally I blame the designated hitter rule.
Ha - me, too!
This was a fantastic read. As someone whose whole newsletter is about sports movies, I wish we had a lot more modern baseball movies too. I’m actually amazed that we never got a movie about the 2016 Cubs run and World Series, for example. I’ve heard that Eephus (2025) is great, but I’ve not been able to see it yet.
I haven't seen EEPHUS either, James. Given the overlapping subject matter, please feel free to tell my readers more about your Substack and maybe share a link to an article you feel especially proud of.
Thanks, Cole. The aim of the newsletter is to ultimately review every movie tagged as ‘sport’ on IMDb. I review a new movie every Friday. In future, I’ll also be looking to review sports-themed tv shows, but every Friday will always be a new sports movie review. There’s plenty out there to keep me going for some time! :)
I tried to have a bit of fun with the format of the newsletter. The first part is the pre-game, where I cover any housekeeping, do an intro and catch up etc. Then we have the first half, which is the movie review. Then it’s halftime, where I go off topic and discuss what non-sports stuff I’ve been watching or share any trailers etc for movies I’m looking forward to - anything off topic really. After that we go to the second half, where I dish out awards for this week’s movie - best scene, best line, trivia etc etc. Finally we end on the post-game, where I reveal the next movie, cover off anything else etc.
Basically, I love sports, I love movies and I love sports movies 😊
Here’s a sample:
https://ballsonfilm.substack.com/p/mr-baseball
I love Moneyball because it fits well with my systems thinking approach to life after a lifetime playing war games (I once had the complete Stratomatic Baseball Game with all the player card sets then available but gave it away because it would not have left me any time to actually have a life). I also like Trouble With the Curve which doesn’t have a lot of baseball in it but offers appreciation for people who actually look at the whole and don’t get distracted by the parts of the game. I think I’ve seen every pic on your list as well as many of the old B&W Hollywood baseball pics.
Thanks for the thoughts, Robert!
I will bookmark and have a read at the weekend. The interesting question that occurred to me was also ‘what are the things which make / made America great?’
For the top three I might list
-the boundless optimism and enthusiasm
-the glamour and pizazz (nothing says glamour quite as much as old school Hollywood did (more so than now)
-how everything American was always bigger and shinier than from somewhere else.
Curious to know what others would list. Imagine freedom might be one - or the chance to succeed whatever your beginnings (something which is getting harder now).
I'm going to leave this debate for others to participate in, if only because my relationship with the United States is in a very terrible place right now. I'd love to hear other thoughts, though!
Lovely comment. I realized how much I still loved baseball when my nephew and his wife invited me to go to some games in Pittsfield, MA in the same decade you are talking about. We went to watch the local farm team, the Pittsfield Mets, quite a few times. Then we all went over to Boston to watch the Red Sox play. It was so exciting!
When I was growing up, in Armonk, NY, we all played baseball at the lunchtime recess. The girls played softball, the boys played hardball. That’s just what kids did in the 1950s. Gulp down lunch in 15 min. So we could play for a half hour. I was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan in those days, as were all of my friends. We simply hated the Yankees. But when the Dodgers went to L.A., of all the horrid places in the universe, a lot of us just stopped following the sport. I’ve heard Doris Kearns Goodwin say the exact same thing. Maybe in Ken Burns’s documentary? Such a monumental betrayal!
I suppose if I had a team anymore it would be the Sox, but now I live in Chicago. I have a friend here who always has season tickets for the Cubs. Haven’t been to a game yet, but I think about it…
I find attending games wonderful experiences. It's one of the rare times, since I left America, that I can forget my issues with it.
Great stuff. I grew up loving baseball, skipped out for a decade or so, and now I'm back. THE NATURAL gets a viewing nearly once a year as my fantasy baseball season kicks off. Both my fantasy team and my playstation team are named THE SAVOY SPECIALS after Bobby the bat boy's bat. It is a magical game. Being a lifetime Mets fan, Game 6 of the '86 World Series is the zenith of what insanity happens to make baseball the great leveler in team sports.
As an adult I have sadly become a Mariners' fan (feel our sorrow), and as another abysmal season came to an end this year the local sports show had a sound bite (and I paraphrase) that I loved (and sorry I'm not sure whom to attribute this quote), "All team sports, basketball, hockey, football, are based on adrenaline, but baseball is all about tension. It's the one sport that allows you to cut the faces in the crowd and see the joy and dread on their faces as they anticipate what is going to happen next from pitch to pitch."
Let's go Mets!!
I think this observation is true. It has space for stories, to slow down and pay attention to moments. Every other sport is moving so rapidly, the ball or puck becomes the subject. In baseball, the people almost always are.
Right? Totally makes sense that this is the sport that storytellers tend to gravitate toward (in general), the pacing, with room to breathe.
Enjoyed this post. Well worth checking out: Noah Gittell's new book BASEBALL: THE MOVIE, about these very themes. He has a terrific Substack, too.
Thanks for the pointer, Vince. Sounds right up my alley!
Could use one now.
In a previous post, you asked us about movies that were quintessentially American. I absolutely cannot believe I didn't think of any of these great baseball movies!! Perhaps because none of them is considered to be "great art". The Natural is the closest to an art film. They are all very entertaining, and as American as it gets. My favorites are The Natural, Field of Dreams (gorgeous nostalgia), Eight Men Out (an unsentimental, anti-nostalgic look at a famous cheating scandal), Bull Durham (hilarious and sexy), and the feel-good A League of Their Own (just a great popcorn movie). Baseball movies are ready for a comeback!
I tend to to think of THE NATURAL, FIELD OF DREAMS, and BULL DURHAM as all quintessentially American, but I'd suggest BULL DURHAM is high art myself. 99% of scripts ever written don't approach its narrative grace or character work. It's a perfect film.