HOLLYWOOD HAS BEEN BERY BERY GOOD TO BASEBALL

     As I write this, Opening Day is upon us. Hollywood (and I) just love baseball. And for whatever reason, the very best sports movies are about the National Pastime. Herewith my personal baseball favorites.
     1. Field Of Dreams (1989). It's the best thing Kevin Costner has ever done. James Earl Jones is splendid as the kidnaped writer and Ray Liotta's debut as Shoeless Joe is top notch. The magic of baseball and something of what it has meant to America is here, as well as the ridicule true believers in any magic have to endure. When the players come out of the corn field, I always get goose bumps!
     2. The Natural (1984). Larger than life and meant to be, this is the fable of the Great American Hero. Robert Redford has it down pat. OK, guys, maybe he is a little too pretty, but live with it. Glenn Close is the hero's dream of The Lady. The argument that Roy Hobbs' home runs are impossible is completely beside the point. 
     3. Bull Durham (1988). The movie that made Durham Bulls memorabilia famous. As good as it gets in portraying the gritty, quirky world of minor league baseball. Susan Sarandon is just right (isn't she always?) as the ultimate "fan," Kevin Costner is fine as Crash Davis, and a pleasantly awkward Tim Robbins is good as The Kid. Funny, touching, and lots of fun.
     4. Pride Of The Yankees (1942). Gary Cooper is more like Lou Gehrig than Gehrig was. The complete team player with the terminal disease that was named for him won't leave a dry eye in the house when the credits roll. 
     5. Bang The Drum Slowly (1973). Another doomed player, here a none-too-bright but engaging Robert DeNiro. He gets the puzzlement of "why me" across really well. The camaraderie of the players, and even their occasional meanness, is right on the money.
     6. Major League (1989). Some of the action in this one is pretty realistic. The Cleveland Indians are the worst team in the majors and their owner tries to make them even worse. But hey, this is Hollywood and they just might win the pennant. I like the sappiness and the dialogue.
    7. The Stratton Story (1949). Not as well-known as some other baseball biographies, but better than many. Monty Stratton was a real person who really lost an arm and still played major league baseball. Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson are properly heroic. I like the way the other teams don't cut Monty any slack, and that he doesn't expect them to.
     8. A League Of Their Own (1992). Okay, so it's about women, it's still a good baseball movie. Geena Davis and Penny Marshall hit the right notes as ballplayers and Tom Hanks is good, as always, as their crusty manager. Good screenplay.
     And a special Honorable Mention to Ken Burns' Baseball, a nine-hour love story done as well as it could be.
     All of these movies are available on DVD and for streaming. All except Bull Durham are fine for all ages.