The first official day of summer came right around the time of record-breaking temperatures across the United States. You may be looking for something to do in the comfort of air conditioning. We’ve got just the right, summery solution: It’s baseball season, so why not take a deep dive into baseball movies? Here are five baseball movies that mirror the real world of baseball to add to your watchlist this summer:
‘A League of Their Own’ and the Athletes Unlimited Softball League
During World War II, many Major League Baseball players were drafted into the army. As a way to keep baseball going and to keep making money, some team owners, including the owner of the Chicago Cubs, decided to create a new league. For the first time, women had a professional baseball league to play in, the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. A League of Their Own (1992) depicts part of that story.
In real life, women now have exciting opportunities to play professional baseball and softball, again. This year, the Athletes Unlimited Softball League—with backing from the MLB—is hosting its first season. Though the league is currently on hiatus for players to participate in qualifier games for the Softball World Cup next year, games will resume on July 7 and can be watched on ESPN and MLB.
Next summer, the Women’s Professional Baseball League will host its inaugural season, as well, with first league tryouts happening this July and August.
‘The Rookie’ and Pitcher Chris Sale’s Injury
The Rookie (2002) is based on the incredible, true story of Jim Morris, a pitcher who finally made his major league debut at 35 years old, a relatively old age to appear in the majors for the first time. He was drafted out of college but suffered multiple arm and shoulder injuries and surgeries throughout his stint as a minor league pitcher, and decided to retire before making it to a major league debut. He took a break from professional baseball for ten years before making his official debut. The Rookie recounts the story of Morris’ return to baseball and eventual debut in the MLB.
While Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale has played in the MLB for years, winning a Cy Young award—an Oscar for pitching—he has also been riddled with injuries. He was recently taken out of play for a fractured rib cage and is out indefinitely. Sale is just a year older than Morris during Morris’ debut.
While Morris and Sale’s journeys are different, the comparison between the two is a reminder not to give up. And that you can make a comeback at any point in life.
‘Little Big League’ and Club Ownership
As with most other professional sports teams, baseball clubs are owned by individuals. Typically, owners are wealthy and pass teams to their children as an inheritance. Sometimes, owners sell teams because they can no longer afford the team or don’t want to own the team anymore. The most recent ownership change in the MLB is the ownership of the Baltimore Orioles in 2024. David Rubenstein bought the team from the Angelos family. When new ownership takes over, elements of the team change. Following Rubenstein’s purchase, the Orioles are in what they call a “rebuilding year.” They’re training young talent to build up for the future success of the team.
Similarly, Little Big League (1994) follows the fictional story of an ownership change to the Minnesota Twins: twelve-year-old Billy’s grandfather dies and passes the team to Billy. That season, the Twins are not playing very well, and the team faces changes under the new middle school ownership.
‘The Babe’ and Cal Raleigh’s Record-Breaking Season
For one of the oldest professional sports leagues in the world, baseball players consistently break MLB records. The Babe shows part of the story of one of the best baseball players of all time: Babe Ruth. Ruth still holds a few records, almost 77 years after his death. Even today, when people want to express how amazing current baseball players are, they compare the players to Ruth. The movie, The Babe (1992), depicts some of Ruth’s career and life, and what made him the best.
Similarly, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh could join the long list of record-breaking baseball players. The current players with the highest average home runs per season are household names, most notably Los Angeles Dodgers phenom Shohei Ohtani and New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge. Last year, Ohtani became the first player in history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in one season. But Raleigh is on track to break records of his own. In the entire 2024 season, Raleigh hit 34 home runs. On June 23, he hit his 32nd home run. Though it will be a few months before we know if Raleigh will break the single-season record for home runs, he probably has his eye on a closer record: In 2001, San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds set the record for home runs before the mid-July All-Star break at 39. That year, he went on to beat Ruth’s single-season home run record. Turns out, though, Bonds was on steroids at that point, which makes Raleigh’s run even more incredible.
‘Moneyball’ and the Draft
As we approach July, trades and reassignments for teams are constant headlines. In the middle of July, teams will participate in the MLB draft, choosing who their newest players will be. And, by July 31, any trades the teams want to make must be completed—it’s called the trade deadline. Teams, especially those that are World Series contenders, need to nail down everything and anything they need in order to make their teams the most successful. This is based on a lot of information: Scouts go to see players hit, pitch, run, and field; the teams watch recordings of the players; the analysts study the data, real or projected.
This mirrors the story of Moneyball (2011), based on a true story. The movie follows a struggling Oakland Athletics team, needing to make the most of limited funds. While the strategies depicted in Moneyball are not the strategies all teams use, it gives an inside look into how some of your favorite players were brought onto their teams.
If you still need more suggestions, here are a few, either related to the baseball world or just good movies:
- Field of Dreams (1989): One of the most classic baseball movies of all time.
- Sandlot (1993): The other most classic baseball movie of all time.
- Bull Durham (1988): A baseball love story.
- You Gotta Believe (2024): Watch this one before the Little League World Series in August.
- Eephus (2024): The most recently released baseball movie, about amateur baseball players.
- Everyone’s Hero (2006): An animated movie about a kid’s love for Babe Ruth.
- 42 (2013): The biopic following Jackie Robinson as he breaks the baseball color barrier.
- Major League (1989): A movie about working hard for what you want.
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