The Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)

In 1973, Hollywood actor Bing Russell starts an independent minor league baseball team in Portland consisting of outcasts and misfits, and turns them into unlikely overnight success.

Directors:

Chapman Way, Maclain Way

Stars:

Lou Russell, Kurt Russell, Ken Wheeler

Cast

Credited cast:
Lou Russell	...	Self - Bing's Wife
Kurt Russell	...	Self - Vice-President / Designated Hitter
Ken Wheeler	...	Self - Sports Writer / Oregon Journal
Todd Field	...	Self - Batboy
Jack Faust	...	Self - Attorney
Carren Woods	...	Self - Assistant G.M.
Nick Bertram	...	Self - Sports Writer / Oregon Journal
Robert Richardson	...	Self - Northwest League President
Frank Peters	...	Self - Manager '74 - '75
Rob Nelson	...	Self - Pitcher
Jim Swanson	...	Self - Catcher (as Swannie)
Larry Colton	...	Self - Pitcher
Jon Yoshiwara	...	Self - Infielder
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jim Bouton	...	Self - Pitcher (archive footage)
Johnny Carson	...	Self (archive footage)

Storyline

The Battered Bastards of Baseball is one of baseball's last great, unheralded true stories. In 1973, Hollywood veteran Bing Russell (best known for playing Deputy Clem on "Bonanza") created the only independent baseball team in America at the time, the legendary Portland Mavericks. Bing operated without a Major League affiliation while playing in a city that was considered a wasteland for professional baseball. Tryouts for the Mavericks, which were open to the public, were filled with hopefuls who arrived in droves from every state in America, many of whom had been rejected by organized baseball. Skeptics agreed it would never work. But Bing's Mavericks generated unprecedented success: they shattered attendance records, signed Kurt Russell - Bing's son - as a player and team Vice President, produced the most successful batboy in baseball (filmmaker Todd Field), re-launched the controversial career of Jim Bouton, hired the first female general manager in Baseball, and inspired one of ...

---

Plot Keywords:

actor | 

---

Taglines:

The one team that had a pair

---

Genres:

Documentary | Sport

---

Did You Know?

Trivia

Though it's not disclosed here, both of this documentary's co-directors, as well as its music producer, are the grandsons of the film's main character Bing Russell, and the nephews of Bing's son Kurt Russell.

---

Quotes

Todd Field: Reggie lived at the Mallory Hotel, which is literally one block from Civic Stadium. And before every single game, a car came down the back ramp, and as that car came down the ramp to go underneath, our announcer would yell "Here comes Reggie!" And people went nuts. And people, rightly so, would ask Bing "Why the fuck do you get a car for Reggie? He lives a block away!" And he said, "Because Reggie needs that."

---

Connections

References In the Bedroom (2001)

User Reviews

Very good

I know nothing about baseball. I dont know why players are running, how they earn points, you get the idea. But I enjoyied this film very much, it makes me feel realy good

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 July 2014 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

The Battered Bastards of Baseball

Box Office

Budget:

$75,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Color:

Color