baseball | Eric Taveren

Today’s category: Baseball. The greatest sport ever invented. Yes, I said it. Other sports are fun. Cute, even. Baseball is storytelling.

Baseball movies hit differently because the game is like a movie. It’s slow and patient and full of moments. It’s a sport where tension builds quietly, where failure is expected, and where redemption is always possible. It’s also the sport most tied to memory. Fathers and sons. Summers and childhood. The smell of grass and popcorn. The feeling that for just a few hours, everything makes sense. It’s America’s Pastime for crying out loud.

Also, if you’ve ever talked to me for more than five minutes, you know this list was inevitable. There’s reason a rotation of Mariners jerseys hang from my classroom wall.

As always, these are not ranked. Like players, each is good for different reasons.

Play ball.

The Sandlot
*61
A League of Their Own
Field of Dreams
Rookie of the Year
Moneyball
Trouble with the Curve
The Bad News Bears (original)
Major League
Fever Pitch

Here are some brief bits of rationale:

The Sandlot

If you grew up loving baseball, this movie is basically required viewing. It’s childhood, friendship, and summer wrapped in nostalgia. I watched it with my son a month or so ago and he had an unsurprising interest in playing baseball afterward.

*61

This is a baseball nerd movie in the best way. The focus on pressure, media, and the human side of chasing history makes it stand out. Roger Maris’ story deserves way more attention than it gets. As with most of these movies, it’s not really about baseball. It is, and it isn’t. Also, the casting was perfect.

A League of Their Own

Funny, emotional, and historically important. The characters, the performances, and the message all work. “There’s no crying in baseball” has become part of the cultural fabric, and I can still sing the words to “The All American Girls”. Though of all the moment in this movie, the one I reference the most is how long Tom Hanks peed for.

Field of Dreams

This movie is less about baseball and more about regret, forgiveness, and second chances. It’s magical realism disguised as a sports movie, and it gets me every time. This movie is so iconic that MLB now plays one game a year at the Field of Dream field. When it’s eventually the Mariners’ turn I’ll probably have to make the drive down there.

Rookie of the Year

Pure childhood wish fulfillment. What kid hasn’t dreamed of getting called up to the majors? “Funky Butt Lovin’” was a go to exclamation in my house growing up. Plus, I’m still tickled that the mom in this movie is the mom of pro MLB player Pete Crow Armstrong.

Moneyball

Statistics, underdogs, and innovation. As someone who loves math and storytelling, this movie is right in my wheelhouse. I was fairly Brad Pitt’d out when this movie release, and he made me a believer again. I don’t know how many times I watch a game and wish the GM would watch Moneyball one more time.

Trouble with the Curve

This one is quieter and more character-driven. It’s about relationships, aging, and how the game connects generations. I said it earlier, it’s a baseball movie that isn’t really about baseball. And it’s one of the few Clint Eastwood movies I’ve thoroughly enjoyed.

The Bad News Bears (original)

Everyone loves an underdog. This is about as underdog as you can get. The ridiculousness of all the characters, paired with the heart, made this an instant classic. Then they ruined it with Billy Bob. Sigh.

Major League

Comedy is one of my favorite genres. So comedy plus baseball? Yes, please. There are very few Charlie Sheen roles that I enjoy, but this is at the top (or at least tied with Hot Shots). It’ll leave you smiling after every watch.

Fever Pitch

Yes, it’s also on my romance list. I’ve got a bunch that are in several lists. But it belongs here too. It’s about love in all its forms—romantic love, family, and the kind of obsessive sports fandom that makes you both insufferable and loyal. And now that I’m teaching, his relationship with the students hits home even more.

What baseball movies would you add? Which ones did I leave off? There are a few that very good arguments could be made for (Bull Durham, Pride of the Yankees, The Natural, 42, etc.). And which ones make you want to go play catch immediately afterward? Let me know. This is a category where it’s hard to have a wrong answer.

Welcome back to the far too infrequently updated Taverenbooks blog. I keep telling myself to post more, and as much as I do like to talk about myself, I like to write stories more. So my word count goes to Word instead of WordPress. But I’m here now, so let’s do this.

Since my last post, I received an acceptance for a short piece in The Avalon Literary Review, and just yesterday I got my copies in the mail. The piece, et tu Jesus, came from an exercise in my MFA point of view class this past spring and has loose parallels to my own summers in North Dakota when I was a kid. It’s a quick read, but one that’ll make you chuckle and put a smile on your face.

Last week I heard back from an anthology I submitted to, Space Brides, Inc, and they’ve accepted my story for that as well. I’ve always enjoyed reading sci-fi and it was fun combining things I’ve always had interest in (the moon Europa and extremophiles) with the scariest thing known to mankind… relationships. The anthology should be coming out later this fall, so something else to look forward to.

I just sent in a short story that takes place in the early 1500s in France and am currently working on a middle grade short about an eleven-year-old girl who, even though she just saved the world, can’t figure out what’s happening at her grandma’s house. I’ve read some of it to Westley (my five-year-old son) and he’s enjoying it so far. Though to be fair, magic and light potty humor are always golden with him.

Speaking of Westley, one of the reasons I’ve had less time to write this summer is because kids require a lot of attention and energy. In particular, he’s been super into science and we’ve been doing experiments and watching all sorts of videos. Some of the things we’ve done are a marble run, elephant toothpaste, creating S’mores “molecules”, and later today we’re going to combine baking soda and vinegar in different amounts to see what changes.

Driving some of that interest are some videos we’ve been watching. On YouTube we’ve been watching Science Max and Mark Rober, and on Netflix it’s been Emily’s Wonderlab. Science Max and Mark Rober are really good about explaining the science and presenting the results in fun, eye-popping ways. Emily’s Wonderlab is really good about including kids in the actual experiments, so it seems to him something he can do.

I’ll try to keep this next section short because as my wife can attest, I can ramble and ramble on the subject. Growing up near Seattle, I’ve always had a passion for the Seattle Mariners. The last few years have been great with their ever-improving record, and with reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2001 last fall. Since most of the games are on the west coast I don’t get to start watching until 9pm in Minnesota, which in turn makes for many late nights. So when they come to town to play the Twins, it’s especially exciting given how few chances I have to see them in person.

This year when they came I took Westley to his first Mariners game and made sure to get seats close enough to engage and entertain him, as much as can be expected for a five-year-old anyway. Of course it ended up being 95 degrees that day, so that sucked, but it was still a fun experience, even if his favorite part ended up being the Dippin’ Dots. By the way, if any Mariners person ends up reading this, I’ve got a great idea for a collaboration. Call me. :)

I keep saying I’ll try to post more often, and I keep meaning it. Hopefully it won’t take two months for the next post.