Balancing family, work and pursuing your dreams

Rating: 8/10 (2 September 2012)

My only criticism of this movie is that it's a bit long, as they try to fit two stories into one. Would've been fairly easy to make an entire movie of the first half--a baseball coach who inspires his under- achieving team to rally and win district, then an entirely different movie of the second half--a 30-something science teacher giving himself one last chance to make the big leagues.
For me, this movie is right up there with other great sports movies, such as Hoosiers, Miracle, and Chariots of Fire. Perhaps not quite at that level, but the story is great and definitely inspiring. Even if you're not a baseball fan, you can appreciate the emphasis this movie puts on the realities and pressures that families face every day in balancing work and taking care of the kids. And I love that they bring out the challenges of minor league baseball--long bus rides, very little income, and away from family for months at a time.
My favorite scene is after Jim finishes his tryout and is walking back to his truck, the scout comes up to tell him that he, although almost twice the other kids' age, actually threw 98 mph. The scout tells Jim that if he doesn't call it in he's gonna get fired and that Jim can expect to get a phone call. Just wish he'd throw away the dirty diaper!