The Sandlot: Heading Home
The Sandlot: Heading Home (also known as The Sandlot 3 or The Sandlot 3: Heading Home), is a 2007 film directed by William Dear and starring Luke Perry, Danny Nucci and Sarah Deakins. It is the second sequel to "The Sandlot" (1993), with the other one being "The Sandlot 2" (2005). It was released direct-to-video on May 1, 2007. Plot. In 2004, successful, but arrogant, baseball superstar Tommy "Santa" Santorelli of the Los Angeles Dodgers is knocked unconscious by a wild pitch after being blinded by a mistakenly launched fireworks display. Tommy wakes up  twenty-eight years in the past as his 13-year-old self in 1976. When Tommy attempts to explain his time travel to his mother Sara, she takes him to the doctor, with whom he quarrels. After Tommy leaves the office, the doctor and Sara discuss her being diagnosed with cancer. Eventually, his mother sends him to play baseball with his friends Two-Ton, Ryan, Q, D.P., Wings, Timber, Wok, and Roll who all play on the sandlot baseball team. The next day, Tommy tells his story to teammate Ryan, and later protects him from local bully E.J. Needman, whose  father, Earl, is planning to build condominiums on the Sandlot. After seeing the disrespectful attitude of E.J., Tommy decides to join the Sandlot team to put him in his place. Tommy instructs his teammates with the help of Benny and Squints, thereby winning several games. Needman proposes a baseball game to determine the fate of the Sandlot. Tommy joins Needman's team; but ultimately returns to that of his friends, and wins the game for them, saving the Sandlot. After the game, Tommy rushes home to Sara, who is growing weaker, telling her that he won. She tells Tommy she  is proud of him. Outside, Ryan throws the game ball to Tommy claiming everyone wanted him to have it, he throws it knocking Tommy out and returning him to the present. Upon his return to the present, he wakes up in the hospital being treated by Q who has become a doctor, and learns that instead of becoming an arrogant and disloyal player, he has remained loyal to the Dodgers his entire career. He has also married his girlfriend, Judy, and they have two children named Oliver and Heather. The biggest difference of all is that he stayed in communication  with his old friends ever since this victory. Tommy then speaks to his mother's spirit, proud of who he has now become. Reception. Heather Boerner of Common Sense Media gave the film four out of five stars, writing "If you mixed "Back to the Future" with "A Christmas Carol" and sprinkled in a liberal dose of baseball fandom, you'd end up with this sweet, fun baseball movie that entertains while it instructs."