With rumors of a sequel to Bull Durham running around, I thought I’d take this opportunity to vent about something that’s been bugging me for awhile.
I recently watched the movie for the umpteenth time and one scene in particular always makes me scratch my head. It takes place in the night game in which Nuke adheres to Crash’s pitch selection (he’s also wearing Annie Savoy’s garter belt, but what the hey).
The catcher whips the ball around the horn following a pop up out and asks for the ball, making his way to the mound. What are you doing here, Nuke asks, I’m cruising. Davis tells him to hit the Bulls’ mascot with the next ball, which he does, with seeming relish. As Crash and Nuke titter over their conspiracy, the batter is flustered. Crash warns him about digging in and the batter swings and misses at the next pitch, which comes right down the middle, to strike out.
Read that again. I didn’t leave anything out.
First pitch waaaay outside for ball one.
Next pitch, a swinging strike, resulting in a two-pitch “K.”
As a student of the cinema, I know they can’t show every pitch or play, but come on. Costner starred in three baseball films and seems to be a real fan; you think he would have objected to the error.
And while I’m ranting: one would assume this was a home game and the action started in the op of the first. Nuke strikes out one and gets another batter on a pop-out to first: two outs, inning over. So if we progress right to the bottom of the first, is Crash batting in the lead-off spot when he hits his called shot? A mid-30s catcher leading off? Not saying it couldn’t happen; just seems odd.
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Based on the egregious errors I’ve seen in other baseball films (Joe Jackson batting right-handed in “Field of Dreams”; Dickie Kerr being portrayed as a right-handed pitcher in “Eight Men Out”), I’d say the Bull Durham errors are mild. Having said that, it bugs the hell out of me when directors/producers can’t get things right, especially when it comes to sports movies (would a ball that bounced off the center fielder’s head in Fenway Park really go into the stands like it did in “For Love of the Game?” Only if he was in the triangle, otherwise it would had to have taken one hell of a bounce to reach the fans in the center field seats. And that’s just one of a ton of mistakes in that movie).
As far as a mid-30s catcher leading off goes, I agree that it’s improbable, but Brian Downing led off on many occasions and though he was no longer a catcher, it wouldn’t have been too far-fetched to believe he could have been a decent backstop in his mid-30s and could have continued to lead off. But I get your point and it would have made more sense to have Crash Davis hitting third or fourth.
And I’m not even talking about trying to pull one over on the fans by substituting stadiums, etc. Just the basic things.
As far as Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams, I once heard an interview with the director (whose name escapes me at the moment) about people complaining as to Ray Liotta’s handedness or lack of a Southern drawl. The director said this was a work of fiction, and since it was adapted from Kinsella’s story, he’s write. Nevertheless, Jackson was drawn on real life/ To quote Willy Loman’s wife, “Attention must be paid!
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