The Battered Bastards of Baseball

[Apollos]

I stumbled across a press piece for this film a week or so ago and have been anxiously awaiting a couple free hours to sit down and watch. Finally took the time this evening and can heartily endorse the documentary as one of the more entertaining I've watched in some time. For those that don't know the story -- and I was completely ignorant of it going in -- the movie re-lives the tale of the 1973-77 Portland Mavericks who were an independent baseball team that played in the Short Season A Northwest League following the departure of the previous AAA club the Portland Beavers in 1972.

The story is absolutely fascinating from several standpoints, and I don't want to give away any spoilers to those that haven't watched, but it's hard to see this movie and not develop a deep appreciation for what Bing Russell accomplished in his time as owner of the club. A truly unique and refreshing approach to professional athletics that we're not likely to ever see repeated in today's sports world.

Unfortunately, as of now, you must have Netflix in order to see this movie. It debuted a couple weeks ago at the Sundance film festival and has been receiving rave reviews since. If you have the Netflix account, and about 80 minutes to spare this weekend, I'd strongly suggest checking it out.

[Lions]

There was a special showing of this film tonight in Portland but I was unable to attend due to my vacation starting tomorrow. It looks quite interesting.

[Leones]

Saw this a couple of weeks ago. Terrific film and a great story. Very enjoyable!


edit: typo fixed

[Arroyos]

Brilliant documentary. Makes me want to support all the upstart independent leagues that have sprung up in the southwest the last decade. And it put Jim Bouton's return to organized baseball in a new context for me. A well crafted little film, a pleasure to watch.

[John]

Sounds interesting. I'm going to make it a point to check this out. Thanks for the heads-up, Brian.