Major League (1989)

The new owner of the Cleveland Indians puts together a purposely horrible team so they'll lose and she can move the team. But when the plot is uncovered, they start winning just to spite her.

Director:

David S. Ward (as David Ward)

Writer:

David S. Ward (as David Ward)

Stars:

Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Berenger	...	Jake Taylor
Charlie Sheen	...	Ricky Vaughn
Corbin Bernsen	...	Roger Dorn
Margaret Whitton	...	Rachel Phelps
James Gammon	...	Lou Brown
Rene Russo	...	Lynn Wells
Wesley Snipes	...	Willie Mays Hayes
Charles Cyphers	...	Charlie Donovan
Chelcie Ross	...	Eddie Harris
Dennis Haysbert	...	Pedro Cerrano
Andy Romano	...	Pepper Leach
Bob Uecker	...	Harry Doyle
Steve Yeager	...	Duke Temple
Peter Vuckovich	...	Haywood
Stacy Carroll	...	Suzanne Dorn

Storyline

Rachel Phelps is the new owner of the Cleveland Indians baseball team. However, her plans for the team are rather nefarious. She wants to move the team to Miami for the warmer climate and a new stadium. To justify the move, the team has to lose, and lose badly. So she assembles the worst possible team she can. Among these are a past-his-prime catcher with bad knees, a shrewd but past-his-prime pitcher, a young tearaway pitcher (and felon) with a 100 mph fastball but absolutely no control, a third baseman who is too wealthy and precious to dive, a voodoo-loving slugger who can't hit a curve ball and an energetic-but-naive lead off hitter and base-stealer who can't keep the ball on the ground. Against the odds, and after the inevitable initial failures, they iron out some of their faults and start to win, much to Ms Phelps' consternation.

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Plot Keywords:

cutout | eccentricity | homerun | dog | whiskey | 

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Taglines:

A comedy with bats and balls.

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Genres:

Comedy | Sport

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish Japanese

Release Date:

7 April 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Major League

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,836,265, 9 April 1989

Gross USA:

$49,797,148

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$49,797,148

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mirage Enterprises, Morgan Creek Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Charlie Sheen had previously played real life Baseball Player Hap Felsch in the film Eight Men Out. Dennis Haysbert would later play the part of a fictional pro baseball player in the film Mr. Baseball, as would Wesley Snipes in The Fan. James Gammon was also featured as a fictional Indians Manager on the 1990's TV series Homefront,

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Goofs

The Spring Training site for the Indians is in Tucson, Arizona, according to the advertisement on the taxi Jake Taylor gets out of. While it has since moved, this was correct at the time of the film.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Rachel Phelps: Good morning, gentlemen, and welcome to another season of Indians baseball.

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Alternate Versions

An edited-for-television version of the film featured a revised scene depicting the removal of the final piece of the YOU GUYS STINK / Rachel Phelps Cut-out. Lou Brown can be seen (and heard) asking, "Should I take it off ?" After he does, the rest of the players cheer loudly, though the fully unclothed cutout is never shown.

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Grizzly II: The Predator (2011)

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Soundtracks

Mexican Hat Dance
Traditional
Performed by Jack Grunsky

User Reviews

Can baseball be any funnier?

There have been some excellent baseball movies made from Field of Dreams to The Pride of the Yankees, but no movie based on the national pastime can ever claim to be as hysterically funny as Major League. Granted, the value of the original was hurt by the second and third attempts at re-creating the atmosphere. Those two films were an embarrassment to all involved.

Major League, however, personified the attitude of "Nothing to lose". Aside from the easily identified woes of the Cleveland franchise of the late-eighties, there were several actors in this film that had yet to hit big or had started to fall from grace. The incredibly strong language of the movie only made it seem that much more realistic.