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The Rewatchables ·

For Love of the Game

year 1999decade 90sdirector Sam Raimigenre Sportsgenre Drama
host Bill Simmonshost Mallory Rubinproducer Craig Horlbeck
All 17 categories

Most Rewatchable Scene · 21:00

Mickey Hart’s catch

The first-inning sequence is nominated, from insisting on Gus as catcher through the confrontation with Sam Tuttle; the manager exchange and J.K. Simmons are praised.

Mallory Rubin: Access to Chapel's thought process makes the pitching duel compelling, contrasting the hostile Tuttle at-bat with his affection for Birch and comparing the mental approach to Bull Durham.

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie · 1:17:43

Sam Tuttle line

The Sam Tuttle line about a reason not to be a Yankee and the observation that baseball counts everything are quote candidates.

The film

For Love of the Game (1999)

Directed by Sam Raimi · Sports

138 minutes

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Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Kevin Costner Billy Chapel
Kelly Preston Jane Aubrey
John C. Reilly Gus Sinski
Jena Malone Heather
Brian Cox Gary Wheeler
J.K. Simmons Frank Perry
Joe Lisi Pete
Vin Scully Himself
Steve Lyons Himself
Bob Sheppard Himself
Mike Buddie Jack Spellman
Augie Garrido Yankees manager

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

5:49

Casting What-Ifs

Annette Bening

Annette Bening

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:05:49Read transcript
  • Annette Bening reportedly almost played Jane; the lost casting opportunity is regretted. — Bill Simmons
  • The casting what-ifs category returns to Annette Bening as the preferred alternative. — Bill Simmons
  • The late discussion again favors Bening and jokingly suggests almost any actress from 1999 could improve the role. — Bill Simmons
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14:57

Roger Ebert's review
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:14:57Read transcript
  • Roger Ebert gave the film one and a half stars and strongly criticized the romance. — Bill Simmons
  • The quoted review reverses who asks and answers the disfigurement question, a mistake explicitly corrected in the discussion. — Mallory Rubin
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15:13

Producer review

Likes it; baseball appeal; Preston reservation

Likes it; baseball appeal; Preston reservation

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:15:13Read transcript
  • The producer enjoyed the film, especially compared with recently watching Never Been Kissed. — Mallory Rubin
  • After the discussion, the producer still likes it because baseball films appeal to him, while acknowledging the Preston problem. — Bill Simmons
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21:00

Most Rewatchable Scene

Mickey Hart’s catch; ninth inning

Mickey Hart’s catch; ninth inning

In the discussion (25)
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:00Read transcript
  • The first-inning sequence is nominated, from insisting on Gus as catcher through the confrontation with Sam Tuttle; the manager exchange and J.K. Simmons are praised.
  • Access to Chapel's thought process makes the pitching duel compelling, contrasting the hostile Tuttle at-bat with his affection for Birch and comparing the mental approach to Bull Durham. — Mallory Rubin
  • Talking aloud on the mound and the dialogue itself are considered devices that should fail but work because they feel convincing. — Bill Simmons
  • The apparent full crowd and grandeur of the old Yankee Stadium are praised, with preference expressed over its replacement. — Mallory Rubin
  • The mound dialogue supplies welcome baseball history missing from the romance flashbacks, but the brief moving-out scene leaves the bond with Birch underexplored. — Mallory Rubin
  • The masseuse sequence is nominated by both speakers: the suggestive massage, Jane's surprise arrival, his greeting and the masseuse appearing upstairs make the comic situation work. — Mallory Rubin
  • The established relationship with the masseuse and immediate response to Jane declining the invitation are considered believable behavior for a professional athlete; the massage timing inspires a happy-beginning joke. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel discovering the perfect game and Gus's reassurance are nominated; the speech is praised as Reilly's standout scene despite reservations about the rest of his performance. — Bill Simmons
  • A veteran pitcher failing to recognize a perfect game is challenged, especially given teammates avoiding him; the distraction is nevertheless accepted as useful for the scene. — Mallory Rubin
  • The manager warming relievers and insisting he needs the game is considered less believable given the team's losing record and the perfect game in progress. — Bill Simmons
  • The attempt to replace Gus before what might be Chapel's final Tigers start is criticized as an implausible prioritization of the backup catcher's at-bats. — Mallory Rubin
  • Mickey Hart saving the perfect game is nominated and praised for its payoff, cap acknowledgment and the manager's reaction; the actual catch is criticized as insufficiently athletic. — Bill Simmons
  • Mickey's earlier ball-off-the-head error recalls Jose Canseco, but the depicted Fenway wall is challenged as nonexistent. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel discouraging Mickey from becoming a media joke is praised as valuable evidence of his generosity as a teammate and as material that should have formed more of the movie. — Mallory Rubin
  • Mickey's failed-prospect setup leaves open the possibility that the catch could turn his career around. — Mallory Rubin
  • Signing the retirement message on the baseball before the ninth is nominated; the delayed reveal, owner's reaction, manager's exclamation and Scully transition are praised. — Bill Simmons
  • The ninth inning is nominated, but the increasingly spectacular defensive outs culminate in an implausible diving shortstop play against an apparently quick runner. — Mallory Rubin
  • A strikeout is proposed as the more fitting final out for the story's individual achievement theme. — Mallory Rubin
  • An alternative ending in which the runner is safe and Chapel loses the perfect game is welcomed as interesting, while the filmed achievement remains emotionally effective. — Mallory Rubin
  • Scully's climactic commentary is praised, with relief that Steve Lyons recedes from the broadcast late in the game. — Mallory Rubin
  • The first dinner is nominated for engrossing badness: the notebook and lip-gloss exchange, awkward kissing question and later yes note create unintentional comedy, while Costner's appeal partly sells the moment. — Mallory Rubin
  • The hand-saw accident and hospital sequence are nominated for their excessive drama, especially Jane's outburst, not joining the helicopter and visibly aggrieved reaction. — Mallory Rubin
  • The makeup-smashing argument is nominated for unintentional comedy, particularly Chapel's solemn promise to hire a driver. — Mallory Rubin
  • Mickey Hart's catch is the final scene choice, with the first inning also strongly praised. — Bill Simmons
  • The ninth inning sealing the perfect game is the other final choice, chiefly for Scully's commentary on baseball history. — Mallory Rubin
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42:19

What’s Aged the Best?

Clear the mechanism; Costner as a baseball player

Clear the mechanism; Costner as a baseball player

In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 00:42:19Read transcript
  • Clear the mechanism is praised as an enduring phrase. — Mallory Rubin
  • Sam Tuttle is praised as an ideal Yankees villain, especially his attempt to bunt against the perfect game. — Bill Simmons
  • Brian Cox, John C. Reilly and J.K. Simmons are aged-best candidates; Simmons's genial manager is contrasted with his then-familiar violent racist character on Oz. — Bill Simmons
  • Against the Wind is an aged-best choice. — Bill Simmons
  • The old Yankee Stadium is an aged-best choice. — Bill Simmons
  • Vin Scully is credited with elevating the baseball from ordinary to exceptional; a reported interview suggests freedom to alter dialogue, and his real perfect-game experience adds authority. — Mallory Rubin
  • Costner as a baseball player and in various states of undress are praised, particularly the locker-room changing and sensual handling of his glove. — Mallory Rubin
  • Jane's restrained sexual presentation is criticized in contrast to Costner's, while a defense argues it differentiates her from his usual partners; her museum appearance is praised. — Mallory Rubin
  • The relationship with Birch, nicknamed Scarecrow, is praised for handling friendship and a player's move for family and money without excessive emphasis. — Bill Simmons
  • Signing autographs during the couple's argument is praised as realistic for 1999, but also considered dated because phone cameras would now expose the conversation. — Bill Simmons
  • Gus’s reassurance speech is an aged-best candidate. — Bill Simmons
  • Obnoxious Yankees fans are an aged-best candidate; the caricatured hecklers remain amusing. — Mallory Rubin
  • Gus's .184 batting average inspires a joking theory that the Tigers valued pitch framing before its wider recognition. — Mallory Rubin
  • The catching footage is thought to rely on a double for Reilly, which is considered understandable given the fastballs. — Mallory Rubin
  • The initial sexual arrangement is praised for honesty about Chapel’s behavior. — Mallory Rubin
  • The flashback structure is preferred to conventional narration despite the weak romance. — Mallory Rubin
  • Final aged-best choices split between Clear the mechanism and Costner as a baseball player, with Scully acknowledged as a tempting alternative. — Bill Simmons
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52:27

What’s Aged the Worst?

Kelly Preston

Kelly Preston

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:52:27Read transcript
  • Preston's performance is the first aged-worst nomination, characterized as stopping the movie's momentum. — Bill Simmons
  • Chapel watching Jane and Ian through her window in the rain is criticized as stalking. — Bill Simmons
  • The runaway-daughter subplot and Jane obtaining Chapel's direct stadium phone line are criticized; detailed objections are deferred. — Bill Simmons
  • The changed experience of seeing Simmons after his broader fame is an aged-worst observation: the surprising contrast with his Oz role has diminished. — Bill Simmons
  • The final diving play and comfortable margin at first are criticized as unrealistic; the batter's failure to beat it out inspires jokes about demotion. — Mallory Rubin
  • Removing the reported full-frontal scene is an aged-worst nomination; the quoted studio executive's doubts are rejected. — Mallory Rubin
  • The players holding up numbers when Heather boards the plane are interpreted as jokes about her age and an imagined relationship with Chapel, with the interpretation explicitly qualified as uncertain; this is judged poorly aged. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel's remark about wanting to kill Jane at the end of their phone argument is criticized. — Mallory Rubin
  • The owner's complaint that modern developments ruined baseball is rejected in favor of progress. — Mallory Rubin
  • Kelly Preston is the final aged-worst answer. — Mallory Rubin
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58:05

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Dominick Lombardozzi

Dominick Lombardozzi

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:05Read transcript
  • Michael Papajohn as Sam Tuttle is initially chosen for the that-guy award; his other credits and reported baseball background are discussed. — Mallory Rubin
  • Dominick Lombardozzi as the tow-truck driver becomes the agreed that-guy choice, recognized from The Wire and other television roles. — Bill Simmons
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58:40

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Kelly Preston; Yankees fan in airport bar

Kelly Preston; Yankees fan in airport bar

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:40Read transcript
  • The obnoxious Yankees fan in the airport bar is nominated for overacting; his heckling is criticized as disrupting a rare communal sports experience, and drastically reducing the airport scenes is proposed. — Bill Simmons
  • Preston is the competing overacting choice, chiefly for the opening and hospital scenes; alternative endings sending Jane to London or pairing Chapel with the masseuse are joked about. — Mallory Rubin
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1:01:08

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

J.K. Simmons

J.K. Simmons

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:08Read transcript
  • J.K. Simmons is the primary heat-check choice for the mustache, chewing and manager mannerisms. — Mallory Rubin
  • Jena Malone is a heat-check runner-up for the direct question about sleeping with her mother; her performance's promise is praised, while the final vote remains Simmons. — Mallory Rubin
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1:02:13

Half-Assed Internet Research

Deleted shower scene; Scully casting; Yankee Stadium; Michael Shaara nod

Deleted shower scene; Scully casting; Yankee Stadium; Michael Shaara nod

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:02:13Read transcript
  • Conflicting explanations for the reportedly deleted nude shower scene include maintaining PG-13 and poor test reactions; the audience-giggling account is challenged and Costner's reported anger is discussed. — Mallory Rubin
  • A claim that Costner requested Scully is mentioned with uncertainty; the thin research material and prevalence of minor real-baseball casting anecdotes draw skepticism. — Mallory Rubin
  • The story that Costner persuaded Steinbrenner to allow Yankee Stadium filming despite a Yankees loss is considered entertaining, against the team's real dominance. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel reading The Killer Angels is identified as a nod to Michael Shaara, also the author of the source novel. — Mallory Rubin
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1:05:42

Apex Mountain

Selection disputed

Selection disputed

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:42Read transcript
  • Scully is proposed as a retrospective Apex because cable reruns preserve his broadcasting excellence; objections cite the film's limited audience and ready online access to his real calls. — Mallory Rubin
  • The Scully Apex objection favors his real historic calls over a fictional game, citing Koufax, Larsen, Gibson and Aaron; Larsen is accepted as a strong alternative and Gibson's home run is favored among baseball moments. — Mallory Rubin
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1:09:11

Picking Nits

Statistics; trade veto; manager; uniforms; baserunning; ending; daughter; scar; Gus; crowd; food; romance; father

Statistics; trade veto; manager; uniforms; baserunning; ending; daughter; scar; Gus; crowd; food; romance; father

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 01:09:11Read transcript
  • Chapel's season line—30 starts,211 innings,8–11 record,3.55 ERA,98 walks and 111 strikeouts—is challenged for incompatible-seeming workload and run-prevention implications. — Bill Simmons
  • The manager’s urgency despite a 64–97 record is a nitpick. — Bill Simmons
  • Unusually high Yankees uniform numbers are a nitpick. — Bill Simmons
  • Reilly's awkward baserunning is criticized, with a wide shot using a double proposed. — Bill Simmons
  • Chapel's service is corrected to eighteen completed years entering his nineteenth season; ten-and-five trade-veto rights undermine the threatened Giants trade plot. — Mallory Rubin
  • The preferred alternative ending leaves Chapel crying alone in his hotel, possibly without the perfect game; Jane finding someone else abroad is proposed jokingly. — Mallory Rubin
  • Jane joking about Heather's name during an urgent runaway call is considered inconsistent with her fear; calling an estranged partner rather than a contact in Boston, where the father lives, is also challenged. — Mallory Rubin
  • The tiny hand scar is considered incompatible with the severe saw injury and emergency transfer; a more visibly damaged hand is proposed, with doubt about whether he could then pitch again. — Mallory Rubin
  • Gus wearing the Tigers cap in a New York hotel and his exaggerated drunken portrayal are criticized. — Mallory Rubin
  • Leaving a glass of water in Gus’s hand rather than a bottle nearby is questioned, as is his greater drunkenness than Chapel. — Mallory Rubin
  • The aerial view's empty seats are challenged for a potential pennant-clinching game, whose stakes also receive too little broadcast emphasis. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel eating bread and milk in a glass is questioned as an unfamiliar habit. — Mallory Rubin
  • Jane foregoing goodbye sex is questioned; the claim that she is presented as nonsexual is countered with their first-night encounter and other sexual references. — Mallory Rubin
  • Chapel describing his supposedly important father merely as very tall is criticized as weak dialogue. — Mallory Rubin
  • The saw accident prompts a joking distraction theory and a serious objection that a professional pitcher should avoid risking his hands. — Bill Simmons
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1:17:43

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

Sam Tuttle line; Scully’s pitching-against-time passage

Sam Tuttle line; Scully’s pitching-against-time passage

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:43Read transcript
  • The Sam Tuttle line about a reason not to be a Yankee and the observation that baseball counts everything are quote candidates.
  • Scully's passage about pitching against time and pushing the sun back into the sky is the preferred quote for one speaker. — Bill Simmons
  • The cathedral belonging to a Chapel line divides the speakers, praised by one and considered forced by the other. — Bill Simmons
  • The flashlight doubling joke is an additional quote candidate. — Mallory Rubin
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1:19:13

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

No

No

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:13Read transcript
  • A ten-episode Netflix adaptation is rejected, joking that it would prolong Jane's hypothetical questions about whether he would still love her. — Bill Simmons
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1:19:30

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Pitch count; career totals; sexual partners

Pitch count; career totals; sexual partners

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:30Read transcript
  • Chapel's pitch count is an unanswered question; an estimate of 120–122 is offered from the strikeouts, batters and long counts. — Bill Simmons
  • His career totals remain uncertain, with 300 wins inferred as necessary for the film's Hall of Fame framing rather than explicitly supplied. — Bill Simmons
  • The owner's complaint about modern baseball provokes disagreement about progress, localized fandom and MVP criteria; his paternal relationship with Chapel prompts a Succession joke. — Bill Simmons
  • The number of Chapel's sexual partners is an unanswered question, with thousands proposed from his long traveling career and a counterpoint that repeat arrangements could reduce the total. — Bill Simmons
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1:20:59

Who Won the Movie?

Kevin Costner

Kevin Costner

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:20:59Read transcript
  • Costner and Scully are considered for winner; Costner receives the final choice for his performance and physical commitment, with Scully an honorable mention. — Mallory Rubin
Podcast choices
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1:22:57

The most 1999 thing

Baseball’s cultural prominence

Baseball’s cultural prominence

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:57Read transcript
  • The Game Boy Color is proposed as the most 1999 detail; the unidentified game might be Pokémon according to a consulted enthusiast, while Mario and Kirby are personal alternatives. — Mallory Rubin
  • The Game Boy choice is questioned as specifically 1999, while Chapel's white briefs are contrasted with expected modern athletic boxer briefs. — Mallory Rubin
  • The lack of internet and magazine rather than blog writing are 1999 candidates. — Mallory Rubin
  • The tow-truck call indicates that some technology is present. — Mallory Rubin
  • Baseball's cultural prominence and Chapel being recognizable beyond the sport are the final most 1999 observation, contrasted with a joke about Mike Trout going unnoticed.
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More from the conversation

The baseball passages are praised as potentially the best fifty minutes of a baseball film, while the lengthy romance is criticized; watching isolated innings on cable makes the film rewatchable.
Approx. transcript time · 00:03:14Read transcript
Removing Jane entirely is proposed, but an objection argues that even the poor romance holds the film together; proposed cuts range from twenty to forty minutes.
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:03Read transcript
A prior interview reportedly described repeated pitching exhausting Costner's shoulder and a Yankees trainer providing stronger assistance for his final shooting day; the story is promised for the episode's end.
Approx. transcript time · 00:06:10Read transcript
Bull Durham and Field of Dreams establish a high standard that this third Costner baseball film struggles to meet; Bull Durham is named a personal second-favorite film.
Approx. transcript time · 00:07:06Read transcript
A reportedly removed full-frontal shower scene prompts skepticism about the reliability of the internet account and jokes about Costner's physique.
Approx. transcript time · 00:07:38Read transcript
Costner's criticized performance and reported Razzie recognition are defended; a theory links the reaction to the nearby release of Message in a Bottle rather than this performance alone.
Approx. transcript time · 00:08:59Read transcript
Message in a Bottle receives a strongly negative personal assessment, qualified by having seen it only once on its original release.
Approx. transcript time · 00:09:18Read transcript
Costner's late-career athlete casting is considered slightly old for the role, but his convincing delivery and reported eighty-five-mile-per-hour throwing are praised.
Approx. transcript time · 00:10:08Read transcript
The changing arm angles and curve that freezes Sam Tuttle are praised for believable pitching mechanics.
Approx. transcript time · 00:10:40Read transcript
The visible eighty-nine-mile-per-hour fastball and hand and shoulder injuries prompt questions about Chapel's earlier repertoire and changes as his velocity declined.
Approx. transcript time · 00:10:53Read transcript
Chapel's displayed strikeout-to-walk ratio is considered implausibly poor for an ERA below four in the steroid era.
Approx. transcript time · 00:11:47Read transcript
Jack Morris is proposed as Chapel's initial comparison because of the 1984 World Series start; Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine are offered as better-career hybrids.
Approx. transcript time · 00:12:02Read transcript
The career losses figure is corrected from141 to134; innings, complete games and implied wins are examined to test the film's unquestioned Hall of Fame framing, settling on a Morris–Glavine comparison.
Approx. transcript time · 00:13:05Read transcript
The need for an attractive famous pitcher to seek romance by stopping for stranded motorists is flagged for later scrutiny.
Approx. transcript time · 00:14:15Read transcript
The director, cast, Yankee Stadium and Vin Scully are said to create expectations the film failed to meet; reported box office is $46 million against a $50 million budget.
Approx. transcript time · 00:14:42Read transcript
The extended falling-in-love montage is singled out as especially poor.
Approx. transcript time · 00:16:27Read transcript
The save of the no-hitter creates chills despite the surrounding romance; the extreme contrast is likened to the frustrations and rewards of sports fandom, acknowledged as a charitable interpretation.
Approx. transcript time · 00:17:16Read transcript
Re-editing, recasting and changing dialogue are proposed because the underlying combination of baseball, career mortality and love resembles Bull Durham.
Approx. transcript time · 00:18:02Read transcript
Chapel crying alone in his hotel room after the perfect game is praised as moving and proposed as the ending; the subsequent airport reconciliation is criticized.
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:00Read transcript
The film is said to lack the poetry of great baseball movies despite convincing baseball footage, crowd atmosphere and Scully commentary.
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:13Read transcript
Preston's momentum after Jerry Maguire and earlier appeal in Secret Admirer and Mischief are contrasted with criticism of her acting here.
Approx. transcript time · 00:40:27Read transcript
Preston's earlier marriage to the actor who played Waingro in Heat prompts a brief casting-history aside.
Approx. transcript time · 00:41:32Read transcript
Despite the central couple's problems, Costner is credited with broad personal chemistry, illustrated through a recollection of his presence at a party.
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:11Read transcript
The masseuse performer is identified from a filmography as Laura Cayouette.
Approx. transcript time · 01:17:26Read transcript
The closing explicitly credits producer Craig Horlbeck.
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:58Read transcript