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The best baseball movies, explained to someone who hasn't seen them · District Territory

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Welcome back to the District Territory Podcast. I'm Eric Shellhouse
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: from Bat Boys Baseball. And joining me today, Spencer Nussbaum
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: of The Athletic. Cannot believe we are finally at that
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: point of the season in which we have two teams remaining.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: But here we are today. We are going to be
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: talking about some of the greatest baseball movies of all time.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: Who doesn't love a good baseball flick and leading it off?
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: it's got to be both of our number ones. Moneyball
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: is an all-time classic. Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, so many
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: good names in there, so many good lines in there.
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Based on a true story as well, you got to
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: love that aspect, although they didn't get all the details correct.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: Moneyball is just an all-timer for me. Spencer, do you
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: have a favorite moment or quote in that film?
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: It's funny because the the quotes and the moments from
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: that film rattle around my brain constantly. Like I was,
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: I'll see something out in the world and something in
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: my brain will like reference that. Um, because it's the
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: movie that has been my number one, um, for basically my,
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: I want to say my entire life, but ever since
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: I saw it for the first time in theaters, um, no,
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: I mean like it's incredibly hard. The Ron Washington line
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: always gets me, um, the scene in the clubhouse where
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: Billy smashes the, um, smashes the stereo gets me when
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: he you know makes the guy who played t-ball a
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: scout or the head scout gets like i could i
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: could probably as that movie is playing in the background
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: say all of the lines as they're happening because i've
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: just seen it so many times um can't say enough
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: good things about that film if i were to zero
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: in on one thing i think it is just the
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: brad pitt performance um and like whatever i i'm not
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: a movie critic so i can't get into all of
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: it but all the like little nuances with just like
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: the way he commands a room the way he like
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: even down to the way he eats, which I think
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: is like a big thing in Brad Pitt films as well.
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: It's just, it's all perfect of a baseball executive from
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: that time. It's perfect of him. It's perfect for the movie.
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: It's probably the best. I mean, I haven't seen every
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: Brad Pitt movie, but it's, it's the best, you know,
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: Brad Pitt role that I've seen. And so I don't,
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: I don't know if that's like your, what stands out
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: to you from the movie, but to me, there's like,
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: a million different things to harken back to just because I.
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: Love it so much. Yeah. Brad Pitt's performance is definitely
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: what stands out for me. There are so many good quotes.
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: Any of his interactions between him and Jonah Hill are
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: also up there for me. I love when they're in
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: the scouting room together and he points at him, you
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: want me to speak? Yeah, when I point at you.
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: Or when he goes to Cleveland and he's trying to
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: make a trade work out there and Peter's shooting down
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: every single option that he brings up to the Cleveland GM. Also,
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: great scene. Goes up to talk to him afterwards. Why
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: do you like so-and-so? I don't give a rat's ass
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: what your name is. Who are you? And he talks
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: to him in the parking garage. I just love Moneyball.
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: Definitely an all-time, right? I think it's Brad Pitt's best performance,
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: and I think it's probably my favorite baseball movie of
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: all time. Definitely up there as well, though, is A
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: League of Their Own. That one is also based on
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: a true story. I love A League of Their Own.
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: Tom Hanks playing the manager of an all-women's baseball team.
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: when the men are drafted away to World War II service.
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: A League of Their Own has just stood the test
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: of time for me. It's really funny. Also based on
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: a true story. And just terrific all around. I don't know,
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: you said you maybe have never seen that one before,
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: but definitely need to add it to your list.
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I mean, here's the thing. I've talked to
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: many people about this and often get flack for it.
• 3:37
  Speaker 2: I haven't seen many baseball movies over the last 10 years.
• 3:41
  Speaker 2: I've never seen a league of their own, which like
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: I've been called out by many people for it. I
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: haven't seen probably other movies we're going to bring up
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: on this list. But that, I think that's the number
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: one where I just hear it the most like, how
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: have you not seen that? And so I will, I
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: in baseball from people out of baseball. So I will,
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: I will do my best to get on that ASAP
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: this off season. Cause that's a pretty glowing recommendation from you.
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: Even as a non-baseball fan, I think there's something to
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: be had in that film. It's quite entertaining. And another
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: one that isn't really a baseball film as much as
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: it is just an upcoming story, The Sandlot. Surely you
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: have seen The Sandlot before. You can't really beat that one.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: It's an absolute classic. I feel like everyone's parents have
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: seen it before, too. But the chase with recovering the
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: signed Babe Ruth baseball from the Beast and the crazy
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: adventures that that team has that summer. You've definitely seen
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: The Sandlot before, though, right?
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: I have granted it's been a decade now. So I
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: remember like the big moments from the movie. But yeah,
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: I mean like, and this is the thing with most
• 4:44
  Speaker 2: baseball movies, right. Is they kind of are, I don't
• 4:47
  Speaker 2: want to say from a different time, but like, like
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: there aren't that many movies that are made these days
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: that like really take off that are corny is not
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: the right word I'm looking for, but like sentimental and
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: optimism driven and like, aw shucks sort of way. And
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: I feel like that's kind of the common theme with
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: a lot of these baseball movies. Maybe not Moneyball. I
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: can't speak to A League of Their Own per se.
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: But Sandlot is kind of like the perfect baseball movie
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: when I think of like a 90s or exactly around
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: when it came out. Like it is just like the
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: quintessential archetype for one of these movies. And I did
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: love it growing up. So, yeah, I think it's a
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: fair spot to put it at number three.
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: I remember I saw The Sandlot 2 when I was
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: really little, out of sleep over one time. That was
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: the first time I had ever seen it and didn't
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: know what I was getting myself into. And that just
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: became a legendary night as I was introduced to one
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: of the greatest baseball movies of all time. Absolutely incredible.
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: Let's take a quick break with some more baseball cinema
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: when we come back.
• 5:48
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• 6:52
  Speaker 1: Don't forget to subscribe to the District Territory Podcast on
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: YouTube or Apple Music, Spotify, wherever you get the show.
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: You do not want to miss the Eli Willits signed
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: baseball card we got coming up later this offseason and
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: a lot more great episodes to come. Let's go along
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: to another baseball movie. How about Mr. 3000? This one
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: is always seems to be airing on MLB Network during
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: the offseason. Baseball player for the Brewers records his 3000th
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: hit and immediately retires afterwards. But after review, From the
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: commissioner years later on, it is reviewed that one of
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: his games was counted twice, so he is docked back
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: down to 2,999 hits, and he must come out of
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: retirement to fight down the stretch of a struggling Brewers
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: team to try and record that 3,000th hit. Or excuse me,
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: one of his three-hit games are counted twice, so he
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: has to get three hits over the stretch of the season.
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: Have you seen this one before, Spencer? You were nodding,
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: maybe correcting me.
• 7:49
  Speaker 2: No, I got to be honest. I haven't, not only
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: have I like not heard of this movie, I, I
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: feel like you just made this up. Like, this is
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: just like a dream you had. Um, no, I, I mean,
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: maybe I just don't watch MLB network at all. Um, yeah,
• 8:05
  Speaker 2: you could, you could tell me that that came to you.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: And first of all, great premise. Like now I'm actually
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: interested in seeing it. Um, and like, think that would
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: be a, an awesome idea for a movie, but, um,
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: I haven't even heard of this one. So yeah, this is,
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: this is way outside my purview.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: Bernie Mac starring as Stan Ross. It is absolutely hilarious.
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: There are some good scenes in there. The ball, the
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: 3000 hit ball at the start of the movie gets
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: thrown to a kid in the stands and he goes
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: up into the bleachers to take it back from the kid.
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: Hilarious stuff in that one. I love it. It's definitely
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: up there for me when I need a good laugh.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: Another one when I need a laugh, Major League or
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: Major League Two. Frankly, I honestly like the second one
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: a little bit more. But about the Cleveland owner trying
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: to drive the team down so that they fail and
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: have to relocate out of Cleveland. But the team, of course,
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: does not let that happen. Charlie Sheen is fantastic in those.
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: A lot of good old school stuff going on in those.
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: But occasionally I'll find those on MLB Network and they
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: always give me a good chuckle as well. Have you
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: ever not familiar with the major league franchises either?
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: I think I might have seen it a decade ago.
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: But like we were talking before the call, I'm really
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: going to need you to carry this one. Because I
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: knew Charlie Sheen was in it. I knew it was
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: some sort of Cleveland franchise. Outside of that, I could
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: not tell you a single thing. I didn't even know
• 9:26
  Speaker 2: they saved the franchise. So I'm sorry for those who
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: haven't seen it to spoil it. But it was just
• 9:31
  Speaker 2: spoiled for me as well. So there you go.
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: Another one that I'm a big fan of is 42.
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: Harrison Ford cast as Branch Rickey, who signs Chadwick Boseman.
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: portraying Jackie Robinson Jr. That one is absolutely fantastic. Bit
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: of a historical documentary as well. Incredible stuff in that film.
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: I definitely recommend checking it out if you have never
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: seen it before. There's a lot of important clips in
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: there and uh just kind of tells you the history
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: of the game of where we got to where we
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: are today um that one definitely stands out to me
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: uh if you're a baseball fan out there should definitely
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: go check it out incredible stuff in there um the
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: Benchwarmers is another one too that I'd be remiss if
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: I didn't mention it one of Liam's favorite baseball films
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: of all time um david spade and the rest of
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: that crew david spade rob schneider and josh header john
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: hater excuse me playing clark that is a team of
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: misfits that uh has to rally together to kind of
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: save a field save a team also fantastic in that one.
• 10:36
  Speaker 2: And this also wasn't a dream that you came up
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: with this is a real.
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: Movie benchwarmers is a is a real movie too with
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: john lovitz too and a lot of uh celeb cameos
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: too i think they have going on in this one
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: who else is in this uh Dan Patrick, some former
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: baseball players, I think, but that one is up there
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: for Liam. It's one of his favorites of all time.
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: I absolutely love Rookie of the Year 2, Henry Rowan Gardner.
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: Who could forget that film? A kid breaks his arm,
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: and then while sitting out in the bleachers, Thomas Ian Nicholas,
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: Henry Rowan Gardner, catches an away team's home run ball
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: and throws it back to home plate on the fly.
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: getting the attention of the Chicago Cubs and he signed
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: to help get them to the postseason. This is like
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: every kid's dream growing up to just be playing on
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: a big league squad and get to walk into the
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: clubhouse with the stars. He also gets the brand deals
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: that come along with it, but he's also got the
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: spotlight on him and he struggles to spend time with
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: his friends as a little kid. Rookie of the Year
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: is an all-time classic for me too. Love the scene
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: when he gets into the batter's box too and he
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: actually has to bat for the first time. He actually
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: draws a walk and he's able to go on a
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: trip around the bases. That one is awesome. Gotta love it.
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: Are you ever seen a rookie of the year?
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: I have actually that, that one. I take back what
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: I said about the Sandlot being like the classic baseball.
• 11:57
  Speaker 2: I feel like this is almost like the classic baseball movie, right?
• 12:00
  Speaker 2: Cause you can put yourself in those shoes, even though
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: that this has never happened to an actual individual. It's like,
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: Oh man, like, Because, you know, when you're playing like
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: pickup basketball or pickup baseball as a kid and you're like, oh,
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: I wonder if like a scout's ever going to walk
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: by and like see me do that. Now, we're not
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: throwing 100 or whatever his his elbow situation. But yeah,
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: I mean, this is actually a movie I should probably
• 12:24
  Speaker 2: rewatch it sometime soon, because that's that is actually the
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: classic baseball movie in my mind.
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: You know, screw the Sandlot.
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: This is where it's actually at.
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, rookie of the year just always puts a smile
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: on my face. There's some really good quotes in there.
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: And Daniel Stern, also fantastic, is Brickma, the pitching coach
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: in there. Oh my gosh, hilarious stuff. I'll remind our
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: viewers really quickly too that we have the shop live now.
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: Go to districtterritoryshop.com for all of your merchandise needs. We
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  Speaker 1: have t-shirts, baseball caps, stickers, tote bags, everything you need.
• 12:56
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• 13:04
  Speaker 1: final movie, just because I was at the ballpark a
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: couple of weeks ago. How about Bull Durham? I've actually
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: never seen this one start to finish, but the clips
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: from it are fantastic. And I really need to get
• 13:16
  Speaker 1: on it and actually watch the entire thing in one
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: sitting sometime. But going to see the ballpark there in
• 13:21
  Speaker 1: person was absolutely incredible. Seeing the sign, hit it here
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: for steak, hit it here, you get a salad. Um,
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: and I guess it's a story of a rookie catcher
• 13:29
  Speaker 1: maybe coming up or a rookie pitcher getting to work
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: with the veteran catcher at the doorsteps of major league baseball.
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: And he teaches them some lessons about going pro in
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: the big leagues. Um, have you seen bull Durham before?
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: Maybe you could teach me more about it.
• 13:43
  Speaker 2: No, but it is number one on my watch list
• 13:46
  Speaker 2: because I am in into baseball. Obviously I work in baseball. Um,
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: my girlfriend is from Raleigh, which is like part of
• 13:52
  Speaker 2: that North Carolina triangle and people in her family. or
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: at least extended family work in movies, so it feels
• 13:58
  Speaker 2: like the Venn diagram of where I should actually be watching.
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: But no, have I seen it? Absolutely not, just like
• 14:06
  Speaker 2: everything else on this list. I watch movies. I should
• 14:10
  Speaker 2: be crystal clear on that. If anyone ever wants to
• 14:12
  Speaker 2: check out my letterboxd here about other movies, let me know.
• 14:15
  Speaker 2: Baseball movies just have not come across my timeline. I
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: shouldn't say timeline. Haven't come across my eyes. Um, so yeah, that's,
• 14:23
  Speaker 2: that's on me. And, um, I probably look like a
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: fool in this episode and I apologize to.
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: All of our listeners. I, uh, I haven't seen bull
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: Durham either. So I look like just as much of
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: a fool as you, uh, on this one, but I
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: need to get onto that one day and I definitely
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: need to get back on my letterbox grind too. I've
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: been on that app in a month. It used to
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: be my go-to whenever I was on a flight. Oh,
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: I get to watch some movies here and update my letterbox,
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: but I've been slacking lately. So I really need to
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: get on that. Curious to see if Franny would have
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: had some different takes on his favorite baseball movies, but
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: let us know down below in the comments. What are
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: some of your favorite baseball movies of all time, and
• 14:58
  Speaker 1: what do you have going down for this year's World Series?
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: We hope you enjoy watching all the games, and we
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: will have some more action on this series when we
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: come back next week. Take care of yourselves, everyone. Peace.