The film is dedicated to his father, Jack Crystal, and there is a gorgeous little moment after the credits when a father tells a son to watch Mantle hit. They painted the seats the old Yankees green, changed fences and moved monuments into center field. It's an awesome, beautiful, pastel image that you can't really explain. You just feel it and it overtakes you. But the most authentic touch may be the look of the actors.
Pepper is a near photocopy of Maris.
There was a day in the shooting when Mantle's widow, Merlyn, and his sons, Danny and David, came to visit, Crystal said. But as much as Jane and Pepper look like the baseball greats, getting them to play like Maris and Mantle was work. Jane, in particular, presented a small problem. He had never held a bat or glove before. So Crystal called another friend, former major-league star Reggie Smith, who runs a baseball school.