Watching baseball movies on holidays is a popular pastime. Some of the following movies, like The Rookie and Moneyball, are based on true stories. There is even a documentary in the mix. Bill Durham may be the oldest movie in this selection, but with its mix of comedy, romance, and baseball, it is still a firm favorite. Starring in the following movies are some of Hollywood’s most popular actors such as Kevin Costner, Brad Pitt, Dennis Quaid, and Harrison Ford.
Bill Durham (1988)
Bill Durham is a great baseball movie to watch on holidays. In Durham, N.C. the Bulls minor league baseball team has a poetry-loving groupie, Annie Savoy (Susan Sarandon). When the season begins, Annie chooses a new recruit to inspire about the game and christens him “Nuke.” Veteran Player Crash Davis (Kevin Costner) helps to guide this brash recruit.
Costner is at his most charismatic in this movie as he teaches Nuke to follow the lead of the catcher and sorts out his erratic pitching. The mix of baseball, comedy, and romance is perfect for holiday-watching. Now that US sports betting is legal in many states, you may also feel inspired to place a bet on a baseball game.
The Rookie (2002)
Dennis Quaid brings emotional honesty to his role as coach, Jim Morris, in this movie based on a true story. He discovers it isn’t too late for his dreams to come true. A shoulder injury ended his pitching career twelve years before and he never made it out of the minor leagues. He marries, has children, and becomes a high school chemistry teacher and baseball coach in Texas.
The baseball team he coaches makes a deal with him. He agrees to try out for a major league if the team makes it to the playoffs. The 39-year-old father of three gets a chance to pursue his dream.
Moneyball (2011)
If you enjoy movies about underdogs and love Brad Pitt, this is the movie for you. The true story behind Moneyball is told in a non-fiction book by Michael Lewis and the movie is based on the book. Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) is the general manager of the Oakland A’s. He is on a tight budget but his team has to compete against wealthy clubs. One day he realizes that the traditional way of looking at players is wrong.
With Ivy League graduate Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) assisting him, Beane sets out to challenge the old-school traditions. With Brand’s analytic skills, the coach now has a data-driven way to acquire new players. These are the type of players who have been disregarded by the traditional scouting system but have great winning potential.
42 (2013)
This inspirational biography may be a little too old-fashioned and safe for some. Others will enjoy this respectfully-told story about a sports icon. In 1946, Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford), manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, signed Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) to his team.
He does this in defiance of major league baseball’s color barrier. It puts him and Robinson in the firing line of the public, the press, and other players. Robinson shows courage and restraint in how he responds to the situation. His undeniable talent shines through and this helps to silence his critics.
The Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)
If you love baseball history, this documentary is a great watch. It’s about a team composed of outcasts and misfits nobody else wanted. The independent baseball team, the Portland Mavericks, played against minor league teams for five seasons.
The team was put together in 1973 by Hollywood actor Bing Russell, the father of Kurt Russell. Many consider baseball as America’s favorite sport, and the independent spirit of the Mavericks was contagious to fans. They basically held up their middle finger to the sports establishment and said they were playing the game on their own terms. The skeptics were surprised by the team’s successes.
