Finally, after a long, cold winter, baseball's opening day has arrived! OK, fine: it may still be pretty cold where you are, but... baseball! Spring! Renewed hope that this is the year for your favorite team! When it comes to baseball movies, however, your favorite team is likely quite underrepresented. (Unless you're a fan of the Yankees, Indians or Durham Bulls, of course.) But, there's no need to feel sad and disenfranchised on such a glorious day! In an effort to include everyone, here's a list of 30 movies for each and every major league team.
(In deciding each movie or, in a couple of cases, television series, we wanted to stick with scripted material. So no documentaries or championship season recaps. Yes, some of these are a stretch.)
AL East
Tony Perkins stars in the true story of Jimmy Piersall. Red Sox fans, just be glad that this movie exists or this entry could very well be Fever Pitch.
Gary Cooper was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Lou Gehrig (the luckiest man on the face of the Earth) in this 1942 classic.
The Blue Jays aren't really known for their appearances in popular culture. In Major League II, however, the Cleveland Indians clinch the division against Toronto in the final game of the season. So, there's that.
Surprisingly, the Orioles are very light on movie appearances. Before the Orioles moved to Baltimore for the 1954 season, they were the St. Louis Browns. At one point, the Browns had a one-armed player name Pete Gray. He wasn't bad, actually!
When The Rookie was released, the Rays were still the Devil Rays, but still: Not bad for a fairly new franchise. Added bonus: The Rookie also features Angus T. Jones, making Jon Cryer the only title character from Two and a Half Men not on this list.
AL Central
Probably not every White Sox fan's favorite subject, but, hey: At least you weren't alive when this happened Also, Charlie Sheen's lesser-known third film on this list. (If you want "feel good" White Sox option, watch Max Dugan Returns.)
Well, of course. And at least Tom Berenger isn't on a cocaine binge or in jail for tax evasion.
True, this mini-series is about the Yankees, but the Yankees play the Royals in the 1977 ALCS, which is depicted on-screen. Sorry, there's not much out there for the Royals. For people under the age of 30, the Royals used to be a good team. (And for Royals fans, get excited for your AL Central title in 2016!)
It's either this or Major League: Back to the Minors. Before Target Field opened, I bet at one point Twins fans actually wished that a 12-year-old kid owned the team.
The Tigers aren't very good in this movie. And, honestly, this movie isn't very good, either. Though it does feature a perfect game thrown against the New York Yankees -- and that has to count for something, right?
AL West
Probably one of the most underrated films in terms of future star power: A young Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Adrien Brody and Matthew McConaughey are all in this film. And Tony Danza.
It's not out yet, but no matter how good or bad Moneyball turns out to be, the selection for the Oakland A's will be Moneyball.
The only film to appear twice on this list, primarily because the Texas Rangers don't make a lot of appearances in film. When Jim Morris makes his Major League debut, it's in Arlington against the Texas Rangers.
Judging from this story, it appears that only way the producers of The Naked Gun were allowed to use the (at the time) California Angels in the film was to use the Mariners as their opponent.
NL East
Unfortunately, this movie isn't very good. If nothing else, though, it does answer the question, "Hey, what happened to Michael O'Keefe after Caddyshack?" (It was nice to see good ol' Danny in Michael Clayton two decades later.)
Owen Wilson's character in this movie plays for the Nationals. So, congrats, Nationals fans; you now have a movie that is just as bad as your team.
Bernard Gilkey sees a UFO over Shea Stadium and misses a routine fly ball. I can only assume that there have been a lot of UFOs following around the Mets over the last few years in an effort to explain their play.
I think the title pretty much sums it up.
OK, not technically the Marlins (yes, the mascot more resembled a gator) -- but it is a team out of Miami that loses to the Cubs (ha!) in the 2015 World Series. So, it is possible that the Marlins will change their logo and switch leagues before then.
NL Central
I've always wondered why "injury leads to super-human ability" has yet to ever happen in real life. Then again, this is a team that hasn't won a World Series in 103 years, so it's fun to ponder things that will never happen in real life.
Since the Cardinals are my favorite team, I wanted to include something really great. Unfortunately, the Cardinals do not have a really great movie. So here's this biopic about Dizzy Dean, unfortunately. (Oh, how I almost used the entire series run of Who's the Boss? featuring former Cardinals second baseman turned house-cleaner Tony Micelli.)
Thank you, Milwaukee Brewers and Mr. 3000; you've made me feel better about including The Pride of St. Louis as the Cardinals entry onto this list. (No offense to the late Mr. Mac.)
The original Angels in the Outfield featured the Pirates. Sadly, it did not feature Tony Danza.
The only horror/suspense movie on the list! Roy Scheider plays a police officer investigating a series of murders that occur when an Astros pitcher named Silvio Baretto wins a home night game. Spooky!
Tom Sizemore played Pete Rose in this 2004 film. Credit has to be given for finding an actor who has more personal problems than even Pete Rose.
NL West
Gary Coleman plays the manager of the San Diego Padres, making decisions based on his father's (Robert Guillaume) instructions. I used to love this movie as a little kid, and can remember how upsetting it was to not see Arnold Jackson or Benson Dubois sitting in the dugout the first time I watched the Padres play on television.
Other than the brilliant Nine Innings at Ground Zero (remember, no documentaries), the D-Backs don't really have a notable appearance in film. So, yes, we improvised. Behold, current Oakland A's outfielder Conor Jackson who -- as a member of the Diamondbacks -- appeared on an episode of General Hospital in 2009.
What makes this film interesting is that it's a scripted film about Robinson's life, but Robinson plays himself. This would be like Mark Zuckerberg playing himself in The Social Network.
I can still hear Robert De Niro shouting "Bob-bay!" This movie contains one of the worst baseball scenes ever depicted -- something that resembles a hurricane hits the San Fransisco Bay area, yet the game isn't delayed. Sure. But, hey, the World Series champion Giants!
By far the biggest stretch on this list. Sorry, Rockies fans, but there really aren't any films depicting your team. If there is, please share! For now, you get The Scout. Why? Because when Steve Nebraska is given a workout, he does so in front of a representative every Major League team -- which, in 1994, included the Rockies.
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