Major League is without question on my Mount Rushmore of baseball movies. The 1989 classic follows a ragtag Cleveland Indians squad on their quest for a division title. Watch the University of Arizona‘s baseball team pay tribute to this iconic piece of American cinema by recreating the spring training arrival scene.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-vtHeyLTks
That was terrific. The MVPs of that reenactment were definitely outfielder Matt Fraizer and manager Jay Johnson. Frazier had all of Willie Mays Hays’ mannerisms down to a T, and I thoroughly enjoyed Johnson’s raspy Lou Brown impression.
Here are the original clips for comparison’s sake.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VTKQXv3LE0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH3I-IE0Xhw
Even though I’ve seen Major League a million times, I learned a new piece of trivia about the film today. Those spring training scenes were actually filmed at Hi Corbett Field in Tucson, Arizona, which is home to the Wildcats baseball team.
That’s pretty damn cool. All Arizona needs now is their play-by-play guy to act like Harry Doyle and they should have their fifth National Championship locked up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9myYc8Pn8o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utfkOFia0wE
