“Major League” was released in the spring of 1989, the apex of MLB’s popularity as the American pastime. I had become a rabid baseball fan a year before, playing in the neighborhood streets and backyards with my friends, and obsessing over the ‘88 Mets – my first sports love.
My zest for baseball was the reason my parents took me and a friend to see the R-rated raunchy comedy without a shred of reservation. In fact, we watched it at a drive-in theater double bill (the second feature being Star Trek 5 which I slept through).
Written and directed by David S. Ward (The Sting, Sleepless in Seattle) “Major League” follows a single fictitious season for the real-life Cleveland Indians (now Guardians). Baseball history becomes part of the movie’s plot. The real Cleveland Indians were suffering through a three-decade slump that saw them at or near dead last in the standings every year. Since 1960, the team boasted several 100+ loss seasons and was a joke throughout the sport.
The Movie
Rachel Phelps (Margaret Whitton) is a trophy wife who has inherited the team from her deceased husband. Phelps hates the city of Cleveland and is scheming to relocate the team to Miami with a clause in the contract concerning fan attendance at games. If they are the worst team in the majors, no one will oppose the move. “This guy here is dead.” One of her assistants’ states as he reads the ragtag roster she has put together.
David S. Ward does a brilliant job of showcasing the city he grew up in. Cleveland is a hard-working blue-collar type of place. Fans love their team even if the team doesn’t always love them back. Cut shots show different residents loyally following the Indians despite their constant losing. And the excitement of spring training and the possibilities it brings. The tactic is featured throughout the story as the city is constantly abuzz over the baseball team.
Great Cast
Like the team Phelps puts together, the movie features a perfect mix of youth, veterans, and career character actors to portray the Cleveland Indians.
Tom Berenger stars as Jake Taylor, the catcher and veteran leader of the team. The oft injured Taylor is clinging to his former glory and pining over his last shot at a championship. We see a scene in which Taylor walks onto the empty field and mimics hitting a game winning homerun. Berenger makes us feel like Jake Taylor is a real athlete, pushing his body over its limits and clinging to his past.
Charlie Sheen plays pitcher Rick Vaughn. Nicknamed the Wild Thing, Vaughn can toss 100mph fastballs but has no control over his pitches, or his temper. When asked where he played last season, Vaughn replies calmly, the California Penal League.
Corbin Bernsen, Wesley Snipes, Chelcie Ross, and Dennis Haysbert are key members of the squad. Its funny seeing Haysbert as a musclebound voodoo worshipper 12 years before his breakout role in 24 and becoming the Allstate Insurance guy. The great James Gannon, with his unearthly deep voice perfectly plays Lou Brown the grisly team manager. Off the field, Jake pursues his former love interest, played by Rene Russo.
Remembering Bob Uecker
Baseball legend Bob Uecker passed away this week at the age of 90. A former player, Uecker spent 54 seasons as the play-by-play radio announcer for his beloved Milwaukee Brewers. Uecker dabbled in acting, co-staring in the 80s sitcom Mr. Belvedere. And his presence looms large in “Major League.” He’s hysterical at the start of the movie, complaining about how bad the team is as any diehard fan will do.
His great voice coupled with industry jargon lets you know he’s an actual announcer and not just an actor. He serves as narrator of the sport sequences and montages, referring to the team as “We” not “They,” an inside to how much of a homer he was in real life. Uecker lived an extraordinary life, but with his passing, we lost an icon.
“Major League” was one of my favorite movies growing up. Though I hadn’t watched it in 30 years, I was able to immediately recite the lines and scenes I used to love. Its full of laughs and heart. From the opening Paramount logo to the climactic game against the hated Yankees, it’s a timeless film that makes me smile and miss being a kid.
