20 Greatest All-Time Baseball Scenes in Movies

The sport of baseball has long been celebrated on the silver screen, dating all the way back to 1898, when Thomas Edison produced the movie The Ball Game. In the early 1940s, when Gary Cooper’s sterling portrayal of Lou Gehrig in the movie Pride of the Yankees played to millions of fans, the sport was already considered to be America’s favorite pastime.

Well over 250 baseball movies and documentaries have been produced since Edison’s first classic, and while some are more memorable than others, baseball still lives on through the eyes of Hollywood producers.

This week, Bleacher Report takes a look at some of the incredible scenes that have come from some of those movies, from both dramatic adaptations to more comedic styles. While some of the movies may not have been based on baseball as its primary topic, the scenes were nonetheless classic.

Here is our rendering of the 20 greatest all-time baseball scenes in movies.

20. Major League: “I Don’t Think This One’s Got the Distance”

Baseball is sometimes all about good old-fashioned trash talking, and the Cleveland Indians are learning how as the team starts to finally come together.

Catcher Jake Taylor camps under a high pop fly in this particular scene, and when I first heard what Taylor said to the batter, I nearly lost my lunch. Classic trash talk line.

19. The Natural: Roy Hobbs Throws Batting Practice

Roy Hobbs originally broke into the major leagues as a fireballing southpaw pitcher before being shot by an obsessed fan.

Making his return to the majors years later, Hobbs is now a slugging right fielder, hoping to help the New York Knights reach the World Series.

In this scene, Hobbs finally stirs the memory of reporter Max Mercy, who has spent the entire movie trying to unearth the past of Hobbs.

18. Rookie of the Year: “I Eat Fastballs for Breakfast!”

Little Leaguer and 12-year-old pitcher Henry Rowengartner is introduced to the major leagues in a very discouraging way.

Facing the New York Mets and slugger Alejandro “Butch” Heddo, Henry sees his 100 mph fastball destroyed by Heddo, who mocks poor Henry on his way around the bases.

Henry will later eventually get the last laugh, however.

17. Major League: “Give Them All a Nice Big Sh*tburger to Eat”

Cleveland Indians manager Lou Brown is direct and to the point. He wants to give his team a little pep talk, letting them know that many people, including the media, have predicted the Indians to finish in last place.

Almost sounds like the real team this year, doesn't it?

16. A League of Their Own: “Whaddya You Looking At?”

When tryouts are being conducted to form the new All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, Madonna and Rosie O’Donnell are first introduced as "All the Way" Mae Mordabito and Doris Murphy, who eventually join Dottie Hinson and her kid sister Kit on the Rockford Peaches.

Murphy and Mordabito are duly impressed with Dottie after a brief confrontation in this scene.

15. BASEketball: Coop Attempts To Hit Three Home Runs for Ailing Joey

From the creators of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the movie BASEketball was a complete flop at the box office, barely cracking $7 million in sales.

However, one particular scene is an absolute riot and typical of South Park humor. Coop, played by Parker, is attempting to “make” three home runs for ailing Joey, who is sitting in a hospital bed awaiting a critical operation that could save his life.

Bob Costas and Al Michaels play out the scene in dramatic fashion. Note the obvious sarcasm there.

I know, it’s not REAL baseball, but it’s close enough for this list.

14. Parenthood: Kevin Makes a Miraculous Catch To End Game

In another movie that is not about the game of baseball, one particular scene stands out above all others.

Kevin Buckman, coached by his father Gil (Steve Martin), is clearly not blessed with baseball talent, hence his position in right field on his Little League team. However, one particular catch turns Kevin into a local hero.

13. Bull Durham: “We’re Dealing with a Lot of S**t!”

As Nuke LaLoosh is having issues on the mound, Crash Davis, his catcher, goes out to the mound to see what’s troubling the young right-hander.

What ensues on the mound is a gathering of the entire infield, who all proceed to air their particular issues as well.

It’s a whole lot of “stuff” going on, for sure.

12. Field of Dreams: A Catch with Dad

At the end of the movie Field of Dreams, Ray Kinsella sees an image of his father behind the plate after the rest of the players have entered the cornfield. After a short conversation, Ray says the words that every young boy who ever played baseball longed to say: “Hey, Dad? You wanna have a catch?”

Call me a sap, but the scene still brings a tear to my eye every time I see it.

11. Bad News Bears in Breaking Training: “Let Them Play!”

The sequel to the wildly successful movie Bad News Bears has the Bears once again playing for a championship, facing the Houston Toros at the Houston Astrodome.

Because of time constraints, umpires call the game over, declaring the Toros as winners. However, Coach Leak leads the sellout crowd in a famous chant.

10. The Sandlot: “You Play Ball Like a Girl!”

As a bunch of neighborhood kids get together to play a sandlot game, they are tormented by an organized Little League baseball team, prompting the sandlot kids to issue a challenge. Backed by catcher “Ham” Porter, the Little League team accepts the challenge.

The scene in which Porter says to one of the Little League batters, “Hey, is that your sister out there in left field, naked? She’s naked,” is priceless.

9. Rookie of the Year: “Float It!”

In the game that will decide whether or not the Chicago Cubs win their division, 12-year-old pitching sensation Henry Rowengartner has lost the amazing 100 mph fastball that propelled him to the Cubs in the first place.

With nothing left, Henry’s mother simply urges him to just “float it.”

8. For Love of the Game: “We Don’t Stink Right Now!”

After seven innings of pitching, 19-year veteran Billy Chapel is throwing a perfect game, and doesn’t even realize it until the bottom of the eighth inning. Reflecting on his life and his relationship with Jane throughout the game, Chapel has literally slept-walked through is outing.

Finally, looking up at the scoreboard and seeing nothing but zeroes posted, Chapel finally asks his catcher if anyone has reached base.

Yeah, it’s corny, but it’s a great scene nonetheless.

7. A League of Their Own: “There’s No Crying in Baseball!”

Jimmy Dugan is a down-on-his-luck former baseball player for the Chicago Cubs, forced to retire after alcohol abuse rendered his playing days over. Now just looking for work, Dugan takes over as manager of the Rockford Peaches in the newly-formed All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL).

After treating the league as a joke, Dugan finally starts managing with a degree of seriousness, and in one particular scene, Dugan finds out just exactly how emotional certain women can be.

6. Field of Dreams: “People Will Come, Ray”

In one of the most inspiring speeches ever delivered in baseball movie, James Earl Jones, playing the character of Terrence Mann, convinces Ray Kinsella to hold on to his dream.

This one particular scene shows exactly why James Earl Jones was such a brilliant actor.

5. Field of Dreams: Ray Kinsella Finds out Why He Has To “Go the Distance”

After building a baseball field in the middle of a corn patch based on a dream, Ray Kinsella begins to search for the reasons why his dream keeps haunting his thoughts.

After meeting author Terrence Mann, Kinsella convinces Mann to attend a baseball game at Fenway Park, where Kinsella gets another vision that starts to put the pieces of his dream together.

4. Major League II: The Ultimate Matchup, Vaughn vs. Parkman

With Jack Parkman now playing for the rival Chicago White Sox, and the Cleveland Indians facing the White Sox in the final game of the American League Championship Series, the game comes down to the final out, with Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn intentionally loading the bases to face his nemesis, Jack Parkman, who is hitting just over .900 against Vaughn.

Randy Quaid, playing the annoying fan, gives a funny “cheesy” description of Vaughn’s repertoire of pitches during the scene, and Bob Eucker, aka Harry Doyle, is at his broadcasting best.

3. Major League II: “Wild Thing” Vaughn and Harry Doyle’s Descriptive Commentary

With the Cleveland Indians facing the Chicago White Sox, Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn struggles through his array of pitches that are colorfully described by Indians’ colorful play-by-play voice Harry Doyle.

The scene is also a great setup that would lead to a later season showdown between Vaughn and Jack Parkman.

2. Naked Gun: Leslie Nielsen and the Umpire Scene

This particular scene may just be the funniest scene ever recorded for a baseball movie.

Leslie Nielsen’s portrayal of a home plate umpire frantically searching ballplayers for a weapon that could kill visiting dignitary Queen Elizabeth II is one of the classic scenes in sports movie history.

While it’s not a baseball movie, the scene itself makes this list with ease.

1. The Natural: The Final At-Bat

Can there really be any doubt that this is the all-time best baseball movie scene in history?

With the season and pennant on the line for the New York Knights, an ailing Roy Hobbs delivers in the clutch with a home run blast that creates fireworks, and more.

Doug Mead is a featured columnist with Bleacher Report. His work has been featured on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, SF Gate, CBS Sports, the Los Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle. Follow Doug on Twitter, @Sports_A_Holic.