Roger Ebert gave the film three stars and compared it to a summertime version of A Christmas Story.
Ebert recounted a Benny the Jet play and wrote that the movie had seduced him with its memories of what really matters when you are 12.
The review is praised for lines about lust balanced by terrors, sharper memories, brighter colors, and a life changed forever in a sunny afternoon.

Most Rewatchable Scene

Smalls's home run with the Babe Ruth ball and its aftermath

In the discussion (20)

Approx. transcript time · 00:22:55Read transcript

Seven nominees are offered, only three of which are said to really matter.
Smalls joins the sandlot as a disaster, then catches Benny's shot hit right into his glove and immediately learns to throw.
Benny's paper-route advice unlocks Smalls by tapping into something already inside him, doing what his stepdad could not.
The stepdad is called a terrible dad whom one participant believes hit Smalls in the face on purpose; early-1960s dads are described as rough.
The game against the rivals could have been built into a longer scene, but the swerve in which the sandlot kids crush the other team works.
Ham's trash talk behind the plate channels Bull Durham and gets inside the batter's head, including the shaved-dog insult.
Ham's style is compared to an early Pudge Rodriguez crossed with 'John Crook' (as transcribed).
At a Dodgers Sandlot Night, the actor who played Ham looked exactly the same; his line deliveries age terrifically while the other kid actors are not very good.
The performance made kids think constant trash talk was part of catching; now it would draw a suspension.
Smalls homers with the Babe Ruth ball, though not knowing who Ruth was in 1962 is called as unbelievable as not knowing Elvis; the scene is full of Ruth's nicknames.
The pool scene loses its shock value on each viewing; the triple vacuum explosion and Benny finally taking the ball from the beast round out the seven.
Also nominated: the tree-house legend of the beast and the s'mores 'You're killing me Smalls' moment; Squints's campy black-and-white retelling is worth stopping to watch.
The whole ball-retrieval sequence holds up, especially Smalls's erector set attempt, which answers his mother shaming him for being inventive.
Further nominees: Benny and Smalls with Mr. Myrtle, and the Babe Ruth dream held for What's Aged the Best.
The favorite is the scene where Smalls is integrated and Benny hits the ball directly to him, a display of skill and empathy that is emotional to watch. — Mina Kimes
The Peppercorn (as transcribed) pool scene has hilarious moments, especially Squints's look, and the carnival puking scene is also a favorite. — Mina Kimes
The carnival puking scene is left out because it blatantly borrows the Stand By Me puke scene from about seven years earlier.
Smalls hitting the Babe Ruth ball, the reaction, the quotes and the plotting to get it back make a really good five minutes.
Asked for a pick, the reply seconds the Babe Ruth ball home run as a good pick because the other main contenders spring from it: the retrieval attempts, Benny pickling the beast and the Mr. Myrtle conversation, which recalls Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird. — Mallory Rubin
The 1927 Yankees ball is a nice exclamation point.

What’s Aged the Best?

S'mores monologue; Wendy Peffercorn's name; Ham Porter; James Earl Jones; Kenny's Kansas City Monarchs hat; nicknames; retro fashion; on-the-nose music

In the discussion (14)

Approx. transcript time · 00:34:26Read transcript

The s'mores monologue lives on: the host's son recited it by age eight, and it has a new YouTube life.
Ham's s'mores setup resembles a caterer's station at a wedding, never explained.
Things the film taught an eight-year-old viewer: s'mores, tree houses, flashlight-under-the-chin stories, the word 'bitchin', and cannonballs.
The 'biggest pickle of my life' line recurs, teaching a generation that pickles are a big part of baseball, which they are not.
S'mores quibble: the chocolate must be allowed to melt; you can't rush the s'more.
Wendy Pfeffercorn (as transcribed) is the classic one-beautiful-person legend of a movie town, and her name is a great one.
Ham Porter could have been Oscar-nominated, carries scenes like Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam, and is the best performance in the film.
Ham walked so Jonah Hill could run; in an alternate universe Ham becomes an Apatow-era star.
James Earl Jones has a very high PER; seeing him is a pleasure, as with his Field of Dreams turn.
Kenny's Kansas City Monarchs hat is a subtle nice touch, though Kenny's role on the mound is unclear.
Mr. Myrtle's Negro Leagues background is noted; the hosts cite a 1993 New York Times article in which a Negro league historian said major leaguers barnstormed with Negro leaguers and Ruth played against them.
Ham Porter, the Great Hambino, gets better every year.
Nicknames in general and the retro fashion of tees, jeans and Chuck Taylors or PF Flyers hold up.
The music is on the nose but perfect for kids: This Magic Moment for the lifeguard scene, Green Onions against the rivals, Tequila, Wipe Out for chases; the score is by David Newman. — Mina Kimes

Mr. Mertle's blindness feint; the director's narration; no breakout star; Karen Allen's faded weight; the parenting; steak on a black eye; overly elaborate erector set; unconvincing Babe Ruth; color end photo; the Wendy Peffercorn kiss

In the discussion (16)

Approx. transcript time · 00:42:08Read transcript

Mr. Myrtle's 'you went blind' line plays as a feint where 'you're black' was expected, and the film is called whitewashed.
The Negro Leagues history could have been addressed in about 30 seconds.
The setting is said to be the San Fernando Valley though filmed in Utah; race and the era of segregated pools go unaddressed.
The narrator is bad because it is the writer-director; someone like Tim Robbins should have been hired, and half the lines are about the biggest pickle.
No cast member became a breakout star, unlike a movie with a future star as sixth lead.
Karen Allen as the mom mattered more in 1993, 11 years after Raiders of the Lost Ark; the stepdad actor is now better known.
The parenting: the stepdad ignoring Smalls's requests to play catch, and the mother making him feel like a loser for being smart and calling him an egghead.
Smalls might have founded a tech company without the pressure to play baseball; instead he became an announcer, perhaps with invention income on the side.
Smalls's father died; the stepdad barely engages and is angry when called dad.
Putting a frozen steak on a black eye would never happen now.
The erector set catapult seems too elaborate for 1962.
The Babe Ruth dream actor does not seem like Ruth, and his Field of Dreams role lingers.
The host's son's pick: the end photo of the kids would not be in color in 1962.
Roping the lifeguard into a kiss, grabbing her head and tricking her would not fly today, and the narration adds to the cringe.
The pool sequence follows the Fast Times tradition later homaged in Stranger Things, but its conclusion does not age well.
The ending's marriage-and-nine-kids wink and the boys saying she knew what she was doing feel emotionally beyond such young kids.

Casting What-Ifs

Nine- and ten-year-old kids; a different Yeah-Yeah

In the discussion (3)

Approx. transcript time · 00:52:43Read transcript

The older and younger Benny were played by real-life brothers Pablo and Mike Vitar.
Casting directors originally wanted nine- and ten-year-olds, found that too young and raised the ages.
The Yeah-Yeah actor read for Bertram and was not first choice for Yeah-Yeah; the cast kid got sick and he Wally Pipped him.

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Art LaFleur

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 00:52:43Read transcript

Art LaFleur, who played Babe Ruth and a sarcastic player in Field of Dreams, gets the award.
Patrick Renna is floated but judged to have transcended that-guy status as Ham.

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Squints; adult Smalls

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 00:54:10Read transcript

Squints hams it up, down to answering 'until forever' when asked how long the beast would be chained.
Adult Smalls is offered as an overacting pick and called a good call.

Brandy Booth Award for Best Performance by a Pet

Hercules

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 00:54:33Read transcript

The award was added about ten episodes earlier; Hercules gets ten out of ten Chewys for a tour de force.
Hercules is not really a terrible beast; he just wants to play fetch and hang out, making the fence falling on him heartbreaking.
The lick of Scotty is a full Beethoven-style lick.
Per the hosts, the dog was an English Mastiff and five dogs played the part because of the heat.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

No affirmative selection

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 00:55:43Read transcript

Squints is proposed, but may be in too much of the movie.
If the award goes to someone rarely on screen it should be James Earl Jones, if to a side kid probably Squints; no answer is reached as the rules are still being litigated.
James Earl Jones is called really good in that scene, but a recent Best of the Best viewing prompts the take that he may just have a cool way about him.
The take is rebutted: his charisma is infectious and pulls you into any scene; a clip of the Myrtle monologue plays.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Original title The Boys of Summer; Mighty Ducks crossovers; reused drugstore location; licorice chewing tobacco; retouched Ruth photo; Squints lawsuit; Sandlot sequels; cast arrests

In the discussion (9)

Approx. transcript time · 00:57:47Read transcript

Per the research, the film was originally called The Boys of Summer until that book's author threatened to sue.
Two of the actors were in D2: The Mighty Ducks.
The drugstore from Smalls's first trip to the sandlot was also used in Halloween 4 and Halloween 5.
The chewing tobacco was licorice and bacon bits (beef jerky is also mentioned), and repeated takes made the kids actually sick.
Myrtle's photo with Ruth and Gehrig was retouched from a real photo that included 'Jimmy Fox' (as transcribed), described as a model for A League of Their Own.
The hosts say a childhood classmate of the writer-director claimed Squints was based on him, sued 20th Century Fox over shame and humiliation, won, and was reversed on appeal.
The sequels: one turns the 'play ball like a girl' insult around with a girl character described as Wendy Peppercorn's daughter; Sandlot 3 stars Luke Perry thrown back from 2005 to 1976, with Squints's actor returning.
The hosts report cast arrests: Mike Vitar faced a felony assault case as a firefighter amid conflicting reports; Smalls's actor (transcribed 'Tom Geary') headbutted a cop and went to jail; another cast member (transcribed 'Mike York') was arrested on suspicion of domestic assault.
The arrests are a never-meet-your-heroes moment for girls of a certain age.

Apex Mountain

Every kid in the movie; the director; swinging dog genitals

In the discussion (5)

Approx. transcript time · 01:01:36Read transcript

Every kid in the movie is at Apex Mountain, and the director as well.
Not English Mastiffs but swinging dog genitals: the prominent testicle shots through the pickle sequence could have been reduced with CGI.
The dog effects are poorly done, with sound effects from a different movie; a devil's-advocate case that a kid's memory heightens the beast, with The Wolf Man in the chase, is offered.
For little-kid baseball movies the apex is still Bad News Bears and Breaking Training; A League of Their Own was big for another generation but is an adult movie.
Swinging dog genitals is confirmed as the pick, pending a Beethoven rewatch. — Mallory Rubin

Picking Nits

Smalls unable to throw; stepdad never teaching; Hercules's implausible age; unkept backyard; unquestioned gift ball; misspelled Babe Ruth ball; no Playboys; Hank Aaron card giveaway; unprotected signed ball; unused second baseball; 98-cent baseball; unrepaired fence

In the discussion (16)

Approx. transcript time · 01:04:08Read transcript

No 12-year-old could be that bad at throwing; maybe he just has the yips.
The stepdad never actually teaches him, just says watch.
The narrator says Hercules lived to 199 dog years, about 28 and a half, which no mastiff could.
A chained dog with a blind owner who is never walked means the backyard should be full of dog waste.
Hercules and Mr. Myrtle share a special bond; the chaining in the sun is distressing, but the dog may have learned his own bathroom etiquette. — Mallory Rubin
A stepdad should be alarmed when a strange man gives his kid a 1927 Yankees ball and weekly visits.
Babe Ruth's name is misspelled on the ball and never paid off, a red herring like the Russian in the woods on The Sopranos; Benny as a student of the game should know the spelling.
None of the boys having seen a Playboy magazine in 1962 is not believable. — Mallory Rubin
The boys buy candy at drugstores and got hold of chewing tobacco; there should also have been packs of 1962 baseball cards in the tree house.
Even in a dream, Benny would not give away a Hank Aaron rookie card, given 253 home runs from 1954 to 1961.
A signed Babe Ruth ball should be in a protective case; a counterpoint says that is how it was done in 1962.
The mother's line about the stepdad not liking his stuff touched is creepy, reinforcing the belief that he hit Smalls on purpose.
The film centers on memorabilia, a very early-1990s preoccupation; a signed ball would not carry that weight now.
Why Smalls takes the signed ball when he has the one he played catch with is unexplained.
A baseball costing 98 cents in 1962, around $15 now, is questioned.
No one tells the blind Mr. Myrtle his fence fell, and it is never repaired: kids who built an erector set can't put a fence back up.

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie

"You're killing me, Smalls"; "Everybody gets one chance to do something great"; "Heroes get remembered, but legends never die"; "Baseball was life. And I was good at it."; "L7 weenie"; "We're clearly dealing with a superior intelligence here"

In the discussion (5)

Approx. transcript time · 01:13:02Read transcript

'You're killing me, Smalls' became the iconic quote and is still a thing.
The Babe Ruth dream pep talk ('Everybody gets one chance to do something great') and 'Heroes get remembered, but legends never die' are chosen. — Mallory Rubin
Mr. Myrtle's 'Baseball was life. And I was good at it' could come from The Natural. — Mallory Rubin
Two more: the L7 weenie line, meaning a square, which was baffling as a child without Google; and 'We're clearly dealing with a superior intelligence here' about the beast.
Being compared to an Oscar Meyer or Dodger dog would be a compliment.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

Disney Plus project with the original cast

In the discussion (1)

Approx. transcript time · 01:15:50Read transcript

A Disney Plus project with the original cast is said to be in the works; the reaction is fearful, though most people will give it a chance unless reviews are terrible.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Smalls's ball versus Cameron's Ferrari; Benny's missing stardom; Benny's big-league career; Smalls in the Dodgers booth; Benny and 1980s cocaine; Ham's wrestling career

In the discussion (13)

Approx. transcript time · 01:15:50Read transcript

Smalls ruining the ball was foolish, not hostile, unlike Cameron wrecking his father's Ferrari in Ferris Bueller.
One participant has never seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off and is assigned it as homework.
Why Benny's actor did not become a star: perhaps he lost the magic or did not want it; he became a firefighter, and everyone is lost in Ham's shadow like Joe Pesci in Goodfellas.
Benny enters the majors in the early 1970s as a speedy outfielder; 'the Jet's lost a step' implies a roughly 15-year career; comps are 2011 Jacoby Ellsbury or a pre-injury 'Grady Seismore' (as transcribed) with 20-homer, 30-steal potential. — Mallory Rubin
A pinch runner described as old is confusing; the Keith Hernandez-style mustache suggests a long career.
A Brady Anderson comp is raised and rebuffed as pure Baltimore history; a .290, 13-homer, 29-steal line with a couple of Gold Gloves is offered.
The Sandlot wiki says Benny went on to manage the Dodgers, prompting a joke about adding fan fiction.
Smalls calling games in Chavez Ravine raises what happened to 'Ben' (as transcribed) in that scenario; the easy fix was to make Smalls the partner of 'Vince Gully' (as transcribed).
Smalls's first name is Scotty.
The fifth-grade line makes the kids about 10 or 11, so Benny reaches the league around 1973 and is an all-star by the late 1970s.
On whether Benny was caught up in 1980s baseball cocaine, one says yes because of the mustache; another says no, because baseball was his pure ambition and he was the square.
A rebuttal says Benny had a human side, did cocaine, cleaned up and joined the 1988 champion Dodgers, per the Sandlot wiki as a joke.
Ham's wrestling career: at least an Intercontinental champion, perhaps high on a WrestleMania card but not the main event.

Who Won the Movie?

Ham Porter

In the discussion (6)

Approx. transcript time · 01:24:50Read transcript

The instinctive answer is Benny the Jet, but the Great Hambino is overpowering; a toss-up, with Benny chosen at gunpoint as a closer-than-expected lean.
Ham or Hercules are the real standouts on a rewatch, stealing scene after scene; a spinoff of the two would have made a better Sandlot 2.
The sport itself wins: baseball for baseball's sake, kids who truly do not care about winning and never challenge another team, America's pastime. — Mina Kimes
Asked what James Earl Jones is good in, the reply invokes Darth Vader's 'I find your lack of faith disturbing'. — Bill Simmons
The show's producer, addressed as Craig and asked 'Benny or Ham', answers Ham.
Ham has every iconic line; the closing voice sides with Craig that Ham wins the movie and closes the segment.

Podcast choices

Speaker not identified: Ham Porter or Hercules
Mina Kimes: Baseball
Speaker not identified: Ham Porter
Speaker not identified: Ham Porter

More from the conversation

A Ringer network plug and a cold-open movie line precede the episode, introduced as Ben Simmons week with The Sandlot today and Teen Wolf on Wednesday.

Approx. transcript time · 00:00:00Read transcript

The host's son, his foot in a cast, requested The Sandlot as his favorite movie of all time.

Approx. transcript time · 00:00:00Read transcript

A kids' baseball movie Mount Rushmore from 1993-94: Rookie of the Year, Little Big League, Angels in the Outfield and The Sandlot; the adult list names Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, The Natural, A League of Their Own and Moneyball.

Approx. transcript time · 00:00:55Read transcript

The early-1990s golden age of kids' sports movies includes Mighty Ducks, Little Giants, Big Green and Ladybugs; Little Big League is recalled as the one with Ken Griffey Jr. as a villain.

Approx. transcript time · 00:01:22Read transcript

A theory that studios exhausted adult sports movies by about 1990 and turned to kids after Bad News Bears; Benny's actor also appears in Mighty Ducks 2, the Omar Epps of child sports movies.

Approx. transcript time · 00:02:14Read transcript

The Sandlot is ranked first among kids' sports movies, with The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training the only one near it.

Approx. transcript time · 00:02:58Read transcript

The film brings emotion a couple of times, especially the fence falling on Hercules and the Mr. Myrtle sequence.

Approx. transcript time · 00:03:34Read transcript

James Earl Jones (transcribed 'James Jill Jones') and the Babe Ruth actor are noted as Field of Dreams crossovers.

Approx. transcript time · 00:04:01Read transcript

Eight when the film came out, the participant says it concretized the Babe Ruth legend for her generation, though 1962 kids revering a 1930s player rather than Mickey Mantle is odd.

Approx. transcript time · 00:04:57Read transcript

Ruth's hold in 1962 is compared to Michael Jordan's today, with baseball then the dominant sport.

Approx. transcript time · 00:05:42Read transcript

Whether Benny is actually safe stealing home is flagged for later; another participant thinks he was out.

Approx. transcript time · 00:06:52Read transcript

The film is about friends and summer rather than strategy, and its baseball history intrigues without feeling encyclopedic.

Approx. transcript time · 00:07:36Read transcript

The April 1993 release came before the 1994 stoppage and steroids era, when baseball felt innocent; the current season is in doubt.

Approx. transcript time · 00:09:05Read transcript

Very little baseball is completed on screen and there is no sense of winning or losing, a purist view of baseball as process.

Approx. transcript time · 00:10:47Read transcript

Forced to choose kids' movie or sports movie, the answer is a movie about childhood and summer nostalgia, compared to Stranger Things and Stand By Me; baseball is just the vessel.

Approx. transcript time · 00:11:50Read transcript

The film captures how everything feels life-or-death to kids, turning a ball over a fence into an adventure.

Approx. transcript time · 00:13:11Read transcript

The film miniaturizes baseball myth-making, with Hercules paralleling the Babe, and a NeverEnding Story quality.

Approx. transcript time · 00:14:22Read transcript

Benny is the revered kid who is better than everyone, like Kelly Leak in Bad News Bears, but thoughtful toward Smalls.

Approx. transcript time · 00:15:12Read transcript

Benny is called an empath and a first cinematic crush who holds up.

Approx. transcript time · 00:15:44Read transcript

Benny is a formative crush for a generation; the kids' striped shirts, jeans and Chuck Taylors resemble current wardrobes and his look is timeless.

Approx. transcript time · 00:16:44Read transcript

Jordan Catalano in My So-Called Life is the next crush; boys also had crushes on Benny.

Approx. transcript time · 00:17:33Read transcript

Benny acts like a dad at the carnival and pulls spare hats and gloves from his back pocket.

Approx. transcript time · 00:18:00Read transcript

Per the hosts, the film was inspired by writer-director David Mickey Evans's brother, bitten by a giant dog named Hercules after hopping a wall to retrieve older boys' ball.

Approx. transcript time · 00:18:00Read transcript

Per the hosts: April 1993 release, $7 million budget, $34 million gross, and an estimated $76 million in VHS and DVD sales.

Approx. transcript time · 00:18:34Read transcript

The Sandlot 2 has none of the original kids and a James Earl Jones cameo, and was the host's son's first sequel letdown; a third film with Luke Perry is waved off; a Disney Plus series is awaited.

Approx. transcript time · 00:18:34Read transcript

Home-video money came from substitute teachers wheeling in the TV, the Blockbuster era and VHS-to-DVD double-dipping; any sports-liking kid of about four and a half will like it.

Approx. transcript time · 00:20:02Read transcript

The show's producer, said to dislike most picks but excited for this one, says Squints and Wendy Peppercorn (as transcribed) became a top Halloween costume, especially in college.

Approx. transcript time · 01:26:38Read transcript

Sign-off: Teen Wolf comes Wednesday; the guest plugs her podcast (transcribed 'Mina Kime Show featuring Lenny') and joining NFL Live in mid-August, assuming a football season.

Approx. transcript time · 01:28:05Read transcript