The desire is for the game, not the money

Rating: 10/10 (9 August 1998)

Why is this the best baseball movie ever made? Because to those of us who have played the game, it paints the ultimate portrait of the stoic struggle between love and failure, and the addiction it creates. Baseball is one of the few endeavors in life where a seventy percent failure rate is considered successful, and yet few reach that plateau. This is where this movie becomes special. Almost as important as the physical skills needed to play the game is the mental toughness needed to persevere in the game. The world is filled with people who do with their life something they love, cherish, and respect, so this angle is nothing new. This movie takes that angle and adds to the equation rejection on a multitude of levels. Up until "Nuke" LaLoosh gets his September call up from Class A ball (virtually unheard of), this is the most realistic portrait of, when stripped of the greedy and indifferent stereotypes brandishing it, the greatest game ever invented.