Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1999 fim, "For Love of the Game," grading it on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:19), with an overview of the story, cast, and director, and a PG-13 discussion of Kevin Costner nudity, w/r/t both this film and "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves." They review the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (9:05) and aim to make some personal discoveries at the same time. Amount of Baseball (13:31) considers the tragedy of ratio stat v...
Oct 06, 2024•2 hr 7 min•Ep. 34
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1956 Japanese film "I Will Buy You," directed by Masaki Kobayashi, grading it on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:11), with an overview of the story, cast, and director. If you have not seen this film and are following along at home, use this handy reference. Kishimoto: the scout. Kurita: the baseball star. Kyuki: the coach. Fueko: Kurita's girlfriend. Ryoko: Kyuki's mistress, also Fueko's sister. Also, if you're just joining, a review t...
Sep 29, 2024•1 hr 52 min•Ep. 33
Ellen Adair and multi-hyphenate writer/actor/baseball fan Brian Gene White discuss the hilariously bad 1977 made-for-TV movie, "Murder at the World Series." They talk about Brian's upcoming comic book series, DEATH'S ASSISTANT, his play IS NOT THAT STRANGE, and the 2020 World Series, an apropos topic for Brian's Dodgers's fandom. Ellen kicks off an introduction to the film (6:14) "Murder at the World Series," including approximate synopsis, writer, director and some cast credits. After a review ...
Sep 22, 2024•2 hr 29 min•Ep. 32
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1946 Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny cartoon, "Baseball Bugs." They introduce the cartoon (1:20), with an overview of the story, cast, director and writer, and discussion of the title's play on words. A Legal Disclaimer (6:55) clarifies that this review establishes no precedent for the cartoon to be viewed as a "film," w/r/t the dispute of Alan Sepinwall v. Joe Posnanski / Mike Schur. They review the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (9:01), with a...
Sep 15, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 31
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde gird themselves to discuss the 2006 Happy Madison production, "The Benchwarmers," grading it on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:20), with an overview of the story, cast, director, writers, and the sources of its "humor." A backstory on why David Spade and Rob Schneider were cast! They review the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (8:52), with an on-the-nose metaphor. Amount of Baseball (11:28) sees Eric return to the quality vs. qua...
Sep 08, 2024•1 hr 47 min•Ep. 30
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the classic 1973 film, "Bang the Drum Slowly." They introduce the film (1:19), with an overview of the story, cast, director and writer. They review the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (8:04), with Eric's best metaphor yet. Then, they begin with Amount of Baseball (10:33), discussing the lack of extended baseball sequences, the desire for a Jomboy breakdown, and a 2020 player comp. Eric surprises Ellen with his scoring. Baseball Accuracy (15:...
Sep 01, 2024•1 hr 46 min•Ep. 29
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss "Twelve," a 2019 family film about a little league baseball player. They introduce the film (1:18), with an overview of the story, cast, and writer/director. 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (4:08), they begin with Amount of Baseball (5:43), discussing the abundance of high-quality baseball, with reference to particular moments and a 2020 player comp. Baseball Accuracy (11:36) considers Kyle’s pitch speed vs. real-life velocity from 12 year-ol...
Aug 11, 2024•1 hr 48 min•Ep. 28
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss a baseball-themed episode of "The X-Files," titled "The Unnatural" (season 6, episode 19). They introduce the episode (1:19), with an overview of the story, cast, and writer/director. After a description of the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the show (5:25), they begin with Amount of Baseball (7:41). The episode presents a similar grading challenge to "The Mighty Casey," but with further conundrums. Three true outcomes baseball in 1947? A rundown of ...
Aug 04, 2024•1 hr 38 min•Ep. 27
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the movie "Fever Pitch," the 2005 Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore romantic comedy, set against the backdrop of the Red Sox 2004 season. They introduce the film (1:24), with an overview of the story, cast, and director. After a description of the 20-80 baseball scouting grades for rating the film (3:26), they begin with Amount of Baseball (5:10). How do baseball clips, not scenes, rate? What is the minimum requirement for a baseball scene? Plus, date movie decep...
Jul 21, 2024•1 hr 53 min•Ep. 26
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the "The Stratton Story," the 1949 biopic about Monty Stratton starring Jimmy Stewart. rating it on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (3:09), with an overview of the story, cast, and director. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (9:46), they begin with Amount of Baseball (11:10), slightly hungover from "The Fan," but touch on baseball-related montages. No spoilers on the player comp! Baseball Accuracy (1...
Jul 14, 2024•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 25
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the truly baffling 1996 thriller “The Fan,” rating the film on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (2:20), with an overview of the story, cast, and director Tony Scott’s style. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (6:33), they begin with Amount of Baseball (7:57), pondering whether the finale counts as a baseball scene. They also consider how the average shot length impacts the amount of baseball received a...
Jul 07, 2024•2 hr•Ep. 24
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1993 fan favorite "The Sandlot," rating this classic movie on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (4:29), with an overview of the story, cast, and some artistic touch-points for writer and director David Mickey Evans. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (9:42), they begin with Amount of Baseball (10:33), continuing a debate on what constitutes a baseball scene, and delighting in the return of a favorit...
Jun 30, 2024•1 hr 45 min•Ep. 23
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1974 Roy Campanella biopic, "It's Good to Be Alive," rating this TV movie on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the episode (1:19), with an overview of the story, cast, and expectations coming into the film. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (8:37), they begin with Amount of Baseball (10:12), discussing how to bring something up to code to be considered a baseball movie. Eric makes some claims about the scou...
Jun 23, 2024•1 hr 46 min•Ep. 22
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde delve into all the twists and turns surrounding this baseball-themed episode of "The Twilight Zone" entitled "The Mighty Casey!" Rating this 1960 TV episode on the 20-80 scouting scale may make for one of their most fun journeys yet. They introduce the episode (1:34), with an overview of the plot, actors, and a brief foray into Rod Serling's other writing about baseball. After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (8:18), they begin wi...
Jun 16, 2024•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 21
Ellen Adair talks with Noah Gittell, journalist, film critic, and author of BASEBALL: THE MOVIE. They discuss ways in which Noah's Mets fandom has built character, the concept of love of baseball above all, surprises in researching the book, casting a movie about Jackie Robinson using actors from Jackie Robinson movies over the decades, and the worst baseball movie Noah had to watch. Noah has some hot takes about THE SANDLOT! They also talk about which baseball movie characters to put on the cov...
Jun 09, 2024•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 20
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 2004 comedy "Mr. 3000," grading its tools on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:34), providing background on the director, writer, and some of the cast. After a description a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfamiliar (5:06), they begin with Amount of Baseball (6:42), including a player comp (no spoilers). Baseball Accuracy (15:25) touches on Stan Ross's (Bernie Mac) Hall of Fame aspirations and his believability...
Jun 02, 2024•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 19
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the original 1951 version of "Angels in the Outfield," grading its tools on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:50), providing background on the director, writer, and some of the cast, including a synopsis of the film (6:14). Some interesting facts about the distribution and the film's foreign name (8:51) lead to a funny anecdote of confusion about the film "28 Days Later." After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those who are unfa...
May 26, 2024•1 hr 45 min•Ep. 18
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 2014 film "Million Dollar Arm," grading its tools on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (1:38), providing background on the director, writer, and some of the cast (2:32). After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those unfamiliar (5:00), they launch into Amount of Baseball (6:11), both providing player comps for the amount of baseball in this film (no spoilers here!). Baseball Accuracy (9:42) touches on being able to tell the veloc...
May 19, 2024•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 17
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1976 classic "The Bad News Bears," grading its tools on the 20-80 scouting scale. They introduce the film (2:03), summarizing its premise (3:23), and providing background on the director, writer, and some of the cast (5:00). After a description of the 20-80 scouting grades for those unfamiliar (11:00), they launch into Amount of Baseball (12:18), also discussing shooting conditions and set practices, the difficulty of filming exteriors, and Ian Kinsler havi...
May 12, 2024•1 hr 47 min•Ep. 16
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1993 film, "Rookie of the Year," in which young Henry Rowengartner's broken arm heals in such a way that he can now throw a blazing fastball. Ellen lists all of the reasons why the Chicago Cubs clearly have no other relief pitchers, while Eric comes up with either the best or worst little league team name. Scoring this film on the 20-80 scouting scale includes discussion of Daniel Stern's extra-zany performance, Scott White's nickname for the Mets slugger, ...
May 05, 2024•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 15
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the excellent 2019 Korean film, "Baseball Girl," about a female pitcher trying to become a pro baseball player.
Apr 28, 2024•2 hr•Ep. 14
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss a baseball movie superlative, the 2008 film "Sugar."
Apr 21, 2024•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 13
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1950 film, "The Jackie Robinson Story," starring Jackie Robinson himself!
Apr 14, 2024•1 hr 38 min•Ep. 12
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1996 movie "Ed," starring Matt LeBlanc and a mechanical chimpanzee, widely regarded as one of the worst baseball films of all time.
Apr 07, 2024•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 11
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1988 film, "Eight Men Out."
Mar 31, 2024•1 hr 48 min•Ep. 10
Eric Gilde and Ellen Adair discuss the 1977 film, "The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training."
Mar 24, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 8
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1977 film, "The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training."
Mar 24, 2024•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 9
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1949 film, "It Happens Every Spring."
Mar 17, 2024•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 7
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1989 film, "Field of Dreams," starring Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones, and Amy Madigan.
Mar 10, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 6
Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde discuss the 1976 film, "The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings," starring Billy Dee Williams, James Earl Jones, and Richard Pryor.
Mar 02, 2024•1 hr 40 min•Ep. 5
