Can of Corn Challenge: Best Baseball Movie (June)

There have been a lot of baseball movies made over the years and picking a best baseball movie is subjective, at best, as everyone has their favorite.  Did you like Sandlot or Pride of the Yankees?  Bang the Drum Slowly comes up a lot in discussion.

In my mind, I consider Bull Durham to be the best baseball movie. I really can't put my finger on it, but I think it comes as close as possible to revealing the inner workings of how professional baseball players actually tick.  Pride of the Yankees was too sanitized and Sandlot does a good job at showing baseball from a kids point of view, but for my money, I could watch Bull Durham over and over again, probably because it's more than just about baseball.  And because I played catcher in Little League and the star, Kevin Costner, plays the catcher in the movie didn't hurt its chances as the best baseball movie ever. 

It's one of the few movies where I have multiple scenes etched in my brain, perhaps because I saw it twice in the theaters. Any time I see it playing, which is infrequently unless I'm traveling and staying in a motel that has cable, I'll watch it.  I really just enjoy the movie.  Yes, it's definitely not a kid's movie and if you have an aversion to course language, I would advise not watching it, but I really don't think you can go wrong with seeing this movie, if you are a baseball fan.

"Well, I believe in the soul, the cock, the pussy, the small of a woman's back, the hanging curve ball,  high fiber, good scotch, that the novels of Susan Sontag are self-indulgent, overrated crap.  I believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone.  I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf and the designated hitter.  I believe in the sweet spot, soft-core pornography, opening your presents Christmas morning rather than Christmas Eve and I believe in long, slow, deep soft, wet kisses that last three days."

"You're gonna have to learn your clichés.  You're going to have to study them, you're gonna have to know them.  They're your friends.  Write this down: 'We gotta play it one day at a time.'"

"This son of a bitch is throwing a two-hit shutout. He's shaking me off.  You believe that shit?  Charlie, here comes the deuce.  And when you speak of me, speak well."

"Man that ball got outta here in a hurry.  I mean anything travels that far ought have a damn stewardess it, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I was in the show.  I was in the show for 21 days once - the 21 greatest days of my life.  You know, you never handle your luggage in the show, somebody else carries your bags.  It was great.  You hit white balls for batting practice, the ballparks are like cathedrals, the hotels all have room service, and the women all have long legs and brains."

And, I'll leave you with this:

The photo is from the recreation yard at Alcatraz Island which I took a couple of weeks ago.