World top 10 Baseball Movies

With the steroids scandal having not died down one iota since last year, you’d think the baseball season never ended। But trust us, it did end (the Boston Red Sox won another World Series, remember?), and ready or not, another season is already here। In honor of America’s pastime, we look back at its 10 best movies--and kindly wish the best of luck to the Chicago Cubs, who haven’t won a championship since 1908. Maybe the hundredth time’s a charm…

1. The Natural (1984)

Why it makes the lineup: The Babe Ruth of baseball movies, The Natural is actually about a Ruthian figure: Roy Hobbs, as portrayed by Robert Redford, himself Ruth-like in the film industry. (See how everything is linkable via baseball analogies?!) It unfolds like a storybook, complete with a giant hero at the center and lessons to be learned. And as if the movie wasn’t memorable enough, Randy Newman’s Oscar-nominated, instantly recognizable score--the crescendo of which is still frequently played at baseball stadiums today--is an absolute classic in its own right. Type of hit: World Series-winning grand slam in the bottom of the ninth of Game 7, with two outs and a full count! The list-leading four Oscar nominations received by The Natural actually make the case for No. 1 an open-and-shut one: It’s as enjoyable for the cinephile as it is for the baseball fanatic--which is to say supremely enjoyable!
2. Bull Durham (1988)
Why it makes the lineup: Put in baseball terms, Kevin Costner won back-to-back World Series in ’88 and ’89 with Bull Durham and the aforementioned Field of Dreams. But whereas Dreams has a mystical quality about it, Durham is no-frills, unglamorous and very real--a near documentary on life in the minor leagues. No baseball movie has ever been so spot-on, and as casually great as Costner, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon were in their love triangle--the latter two have been a couple ever since--the nonfiction story is writer/director Ron Shelton’s brainchild. He lived that life and gave it the proper big-screen treatment, resisting any and all baseball-movie clichés in the process. Type of hit: Inside-the-park grand slam. The other movies on this list are charming and endearing and pleasant enough to reel in all kinds of moviegoers; Durham, however, is easily the most relatable for pro ballplayers, whether they toiled in the minors or not.
3. Field of Dreams (1989)

Why it makes the lineup: If Major League Baseball had an official movie, it’d be Field of Dreams. The Kevin Costner starrer--from back in, well, the Costner starrer days--is revered beyond compare, beloved more than any baseball flick, and romanticized by baseball types as if it were the Mona Lisa. That’s because in this context, it is the Mona Lisa! And much like a work of art, the magic of Field is in the eye of the beholder, with a relative few still unable to decipher its greatness. Type of hit: Walk-off home run. Costner has always been an acquired taste, but the guy knows--or knew--how to make a baseball movie. And ladies, if you ever think your man is an emotionless robot, show him Field of Dreams. It’s the male Beaches!
4. Major League (1989)

Why it makes the lineup: “Juuuuuuust a bit outside” is just one of countless quotable lines, and real-life sportscaster Bob Uecker, who provides the color(ful) commentary, is just one of countless hysterical characters. But Major League hits it outta the park with its drama, not comedy, at the end. It's also proof positive that you can easily predict a movie’s climax and it can still be exciting--no matter how many times you’ve seen it. Type of hit: Leadoff triple. The most watchable of ‘em all, Major League can be found atop most Major Leaguers’ personal baseball-movie lists, and rightfully so!
5. Bad News Bears (1976)

Why it makes the lineup: Its subsequent--and subpar--sequels/remake have all swung and missed, but the original Bad News Bears seems to catch on with each new generation old enough to play ball. The late, great Walter Matthau, in an alcoholic-coach role that Tom Hanks no doubt studied for A League of Their Own, was in his element as a nasty curmudgeon, but the team of misfits truly replicated the Little League condition. And seriously, has there ever been a better character name than Morris Buttermaker?! Type of hit: Double, just missing a home run. Bears is generally considered the first losers-to-winners sports movie. The bad news is, look how many lackluster copycats it spawned.
6. A League of Their Own (1992)

Why it makes the lineup: Tom Hanks turned in arguably his best comedic performance (“There’s no crying in baseball!” anyone?) as drunken has-been manager Jimmy Dugan, but it’s the overall spirit of League that compels us to root for the Rockford Peaches as if they were our hometown team. Director Penny Marshall is largely responsible for that, in addition to reminding viewers that baseball isn’t exclusively a man’s game. Type of hit: Double in the gap. Important, hilarious, feel-good and authentic, A League of Their Own is possibly the widely appealing baseball movie of all time.
7. Eight Men Out (1988)

Why it makes the lineup: Until recently, the 1919 World Series--during which the Chicago Black Sox took money to butcher games--was baseball’s darkest hour. Thus director John Sayles was the perfect match for Eight Men Out, resulting in a fittingly borderline noir-ish baseball movie. It also served as a launching pad for some of today’s best (Hollywood) players: John Cusack, Charlie Sheen, John Mahoney and David Strathairn. Type of hit: Ground-rule double. Sayles doesn’t make movies often, but we’re all lucky he chose Eight Men, a true story desperately in need of retelling.
8. 61*(2001)

Why it makes the lineup: Noted New York Yankee superfan/quasi-baseball historian Billy Crystal, who played in an actual spring-training game last month for the Yanks (he struck out in his only at-bat), did both his team and Roger Maris justice with this HBO movie about Maris’ (played by Berry Pepper) tumultuous 61-home-run season in 1961. It’s especially great when you consider other small-screen baseball dramatizations--ESPN’s laughably unrealistic The Bronx Is Burning springs to mind. Type of hit: Sharp single off the Green Monster at the (Yankees' rival) Red Sox’ Fenway Park. Crystal’s best directorial effort to date was objective and fascinating; maybe he can someday direct 73*: The Barry Bonds Story.
9. The Sandlot (1993)

Why it makes the lineup: Nostalgia done right. Unlike the three movies at No. 10, The Sandlot relies not on baseball fantasies but baseball memories--and simpler times altogether. And for those who grew up in the ‘60s, it’s a very authentic look back at what was as popular then as videogames are now: backyard baseball. Plus, “You play ball like a GIRL!” temporarily became the deepest cut-down one boy could hurl at another. Type of hit: Line-drive single. The Sandlot is an accurate snapshot of yesteryear’s neighborhoods, but it’s still the type of movie that’s shown in Little League clubhouses, not Major League ones.
10. (Tie) Rookie of the Year (1993), Little Big League (1994) and Angles in the Outfield (1994)

Why they make the lineup: These three, which simply must be lumped together, are good, clean fun from the kids-in-the-big-leagues movie boom of ’93 and ’94। All were effective as baseball fantasies for pint-sized moviegoers and priceless bonding opportunities for their dads. Picking the best of the trio really comes down to the individual viewer’s team of preference: Cubs (Rookie of the Year), Twins (Little Big League) or Angels (Angels in the Outfield)? Type of hit: Infield single. While these movies are lighthearted and easy to watch, they neither measure up to nor have the longevity of the classics. Truth be told, they barely made the cut.

By Brian Marder, from , Hollywood.com