Combine that awkwardness with Ruth's star power and Bendix's awfulness rockets off the screen.ĭavid Strathairn, Eddie Cicotte in Eight Men Out That's one awkward-looking man pretending to belong on a baseball diamond. Forget for a second that Bendix is supposed to be Babe Ruth and just look at him. I haven't actually seen this movie before having just watched that clip, I'm grateful for that. William Bendix, Babe Ruth in The Babe Ruth Story Still, it's Richard Pryor playing baseball and that's quite the visual. To be fair, Pryor plays a lousy independent-league pitcher who has no shot at the majors, so we shouldn't really sweat it. Richard Pryor, Monty Brewster in Brewster's Millions Is he wearing a girdle? Are those Frankenstein's arms? Busey's Steadman is a stretch no matter how you look at him (especially since he's playing an avuncular teammate) but his physical presence is the most questionable part. He used to be able to pull off a fairly normal human being - well, sort of. Gary Busey, Chet Steadman in Rookie of the Year As a major-league catcher, though? Not so much. It worked well for him in Taxi Driver, where the bony frame fit in perfectly with the shady, drug-stained world Travis Bickle lived in. The young Robert De Niro was a skinny little guy. Robert De Niro, Bruce Pearson in Bang the Drum Slowly One thing he has going for him: that Psycho gaze would freak any pitcher out. Perkins weighs approximately 73 pounds in this movie and his legs look about as thick as a bat. But look a little closer and you notice it's more than that. My initial impression was that Perkins' skills were terrible while his physique was fine. Perkins, as Red Sox outfielder Jimmy Piersall, straddles the line. We're looking for actors who obviously have no place on the field, from their physical appearance alone. A lack of athleticism can certainly ruin an actor's portrayal of a character, but this list is more specific than that. Okay, so I don't want to base these decisions on how poorly the actor plays baseball. Busfield and Baerga might both be leaning over, but Busfield is a Cabbage Patch Kid compared to a real ballplayer.Īnthony Perkins, Jimmy Piersall in Fear Strikes Out The runner is Carlos Baerga, who was listed at 5'11" and 200 pounds in 1994. Puny Timothy Busfield, who walked through a ballgame in Field of Dreams and was barely bigger than the mound he passed, plays a slugging first baseman in a movie that was released while Frank Thomas was winning back-to-back MVP awards. ![]() Wait, is Joe Mauer a \ time-traveller? No, we're talking about Timothy Busfield's Little Big League character Lou Collins, the All-Star first-baseman who dates the mother of manager/owner/seventh-grader Billy Haywood. Kindly Minnesota ballplayer that everyone wants as their new dad. Timothy Busfield, Lou Collins in Little Big League The attitude is right, but Bernie Mac playing a ballplayer with 3,000 - scratch that, 2,997 - hits to his name? With those chicken legs?! I suppose the thought process was "Bernie Mac playing 'asshole Tony Gwynn'." It might have worked in theory, but then Mac stepped up to the plate on his ostrich legs and we all realized how crazy it really was. Let's get started with my favorite example. If he's the kind of guy where you might say " He's supposed to be a ballplayer?!", then you'll probably find him on this list. ![]() With that in mind, here is a list of 10 of the most physically miscast actors in a baseball movie, strictly a commentary on the actors' physical appearance on the ballfield. Can you say the same for Stan Ross? Lou Collins? Even Nuke LaLoosh? The gait, the frame, the posture - Ray Kinsella and Crash Davis look like they belong on a ballfield. Like him or hate him, you at least know that a Kevin Costner movie is going to look like a baseball movie. Not all baseball movies are equal and, what's more, not all actors cast in baseball movies are equal. Watching Jake Taylor call his shot or seeing Kelly Leak go ham on the Yankees will always get the blood pumping.īut be forewarned. One of the easiest ways to pass the time is to grab a bowl of popcorn and pop in a few baseball movies. Belvedere marathon or two, even bubble gum-flavored cardboard might be on the menu in the darkest days of winter. Old Simpsons episodes, baseball cards, a Mr. With another baseball season over, you'll be tempted to fill the void with anything even slightly baseball-related.
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