The Best Summer Baseball Movies of All Time (That’ll Have You Saying “You’re Killin’ Me, Smalls!”)
Summer in Texas means three things: brutal heat, ballpark nachos, and enough baseball to make your glove cry uncle. After a full weekend of select games, sometimes the only thing better than a cold Gatorade is collapsing on the couch with a baseball movie that actually gets it.
Whether you’re looking to relive your glory days, introduce your kids to the legends, or just zone out to some baseball chaos, here’s the ultimate list of summer baseball movies to keep your love of the game alive — even when the scoreboard says otherwise.
🧢 1. The Sandlot (1993)
“You’re killin’ me, Smalls!”
This is the summer baseball movie. Set in the early ’60s, it’s about pick-up games, big dreams, and battling a terrifying backyard beast. It’s nostalgic, it’s quotable, and it might just inspire your kid to break a window with a wiffle ball.
Perfect For: Backyard game kids and baseball dads reliving their golden summers.
SaleSandlot [Blu-ray]
- Youngsters will get a kick out of this kid's-eye-view story of what happens when a shy boy moves to a new neighborhood and becomes involved with a ragtag baseball team. Wonderfully funny moments ensue.
- Tom Guiry, Mike Vitar, Patrick Renna (Actors)
- David Mickey Evans (Director) - Dale De La Torre (Producer)
- English (Subtitle)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
🔥 2. Major League (1989)
Before there were travel teams, there was the Cleveland Indians and “Wild Thing” Vaughn. This R-rated comedy is full of profanity, bad decisions, and classic one-liners — so maybe wait until the little ones hit the hay.
Perfect For: Baseball parents who need an adult laugh after 14 innings and 5 snow cones.
Major League
- Amazon Prime Video (Video on Demand)
- Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen (Actors)
- David S. Ward (Director) - David S. Ward (Writer) - Chris Chesser (Producer)
- English, French (Playback Languages)
- English, French (Subtitles)
👑 3. A League of Their Own (1992)
“There’s no crying in baseball!” Except during this movie, because it’s that good. This story of women playing pro baseball during WWII is inspiring, hilarious, and all-around iconic. Plus, Madonna is in it — remember her?
Perfect For: Empowering your softball queen or reminding your son women can throw heat.
- Tom Hanks and Geena Davis star in this big-league comedy based on the real-life exploits of the All-American Girls Baseball League.
- Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna (Actors)
- Penny Marshall (Director) - Elliot Abbott (Producer)
- Danish, English, Finnish, French, German (Playback Languages)
- Danish, English, Finnish, French, German (Subtitles)
🧢 4. The Bad News Bears (1976)
Not the remake — the original. It’s gritty, inappropriate, and weirdly honest about youth baseball. Think: if your kid’s 8U coach was an alcoholic chain-smoker with a heart of gold.
Perfect For: Parents who secretly want to say what this coach says out loud.
The Bad News Bears (Blu-ray + Digital)
- Tatum O'Neal, Vic Morrow, Walter Matthau (Actors)
- Michael Ritchie (Director)
- Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
🌽 5. Field of Dreams (1989)
“If you build it, he will come.” This one hits different when you’ve built a backyard batting cage and still end up pitching to air because your kid’s “too tired.” It’s about fathers, baseball, and chasing dreams even when everyone thinks you’ve lost your mind.
Perfect For: Dads. And kids who don’t yet realize how much their dads love baseball.
SaleField of Dreams (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)
- Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, Timothy Busfield (Actors)
- Phil Alden Robinson (Director) - Lawrence Gordon (Producer)
- French, Spanish, Japanese (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
📈 6. Moneyball (2011)
Less about diving catches, more about stats and spreadsheets — and it’s still awesome. If you’re the parent with a Google Sheet for every player’s OBP, you’ll eat this up.
Perfect For: Baseball nerds, number-crunchers, and travel parents tracking pitch counts religiously.
Moneyball
- Amazon Prime Video (Video on Demand)
- Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright (Actors)
- Bennett Miller (Director) - Aaron Sorkin (Writer) - Michael De Luca (Producer)
- (Playback Language)
- Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
👶 7. Rookie of the Year (1993)
A 12-year-old breaks his arm and becomes a flame-throwing MLB pitcher. It’s every kid’s fantasy… and somehow it works. Float it!
Perfect For: Little Leaguers dreaming of hitting 90 mph in middle school.
Rookie of the Year
- Shrink-wrapped
- Thomas Ian Nicholas, Gary Busey, Albert Hall (Actors)
- Daniel Stern (Director) - Sam Harper (Writer)
- English, Spanish (Subtitles)
- English (Publication Language)
🪽 8. Angels in the Outfield (1994)
Danny Glover. Young Joseph Gordon-Levitt. A team of heavenly helpers. If your team needs divine intervention just to make a routine grounder, this one’s for you.
Perfect For: Feel-good family movie night. (Or cursed teams in a midseason slump.)
Angels in the Outfield
- Glover, Danny, Danza, Tony, Fricker, Brenda (Actors)
- Dear, William (Director)
- English (Publication Language)
🌟 9. The Natural (1984)
Robert Redford. A homemade bat named “Wonderboy.” Slow-mo home runs that blow the lights out. This one’s got drama, old-school baseball magic, and a killer soundtrack.
Perfect For: Baseball romantics and dads who miss wood bats.
SaleThe Natural [4K UHD + Blu-ray]
- Robert Redford stars in the inspiring fable of a baseball player's major league dreams and the mysterious woman who shatters them.
- Robert Redford, Glenn Close, Kim Basinger (Actors)
- Barry Levinson (Director) - Mark Johnson (Producer)
- Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch (Playback Languages)
- Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch (Subtitles)
⚾ 10. 42 (2013)
NTX Select FAVORITE:
The powerful story of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball. A must-watch for kids learning what real courage and grace under pressure looks like.
Perfect For: Teaching young players the deeper meaning of the game.
Sale42 (Blu-ray)
- Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie (Actors)
- Brian Helgeland (Director) - Brian Helgeland (Writer) - Dick Cook (Producer)
- English, French, Spanish (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
🧢 Bonus Bench Players (Still Worth a Watch):
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Eight Men Out – The Black Sox scandal for the history buffs.
-
Little Big League – When a kid becomes an MLB manager. Total chaos.
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Summer Catch – Baseball and romance collide. A 2000s teen fever dream.
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Benchwarmers – For when you need something stupid after a long tourney weekend.
⚾ TL;DR:
These movies aren’t just about the game — they’re about what the game means. The friendships, the frustrations, the dreams, the dads, the dirt… all of it. Pop some popcorn, crack open a cold one, and let the game roll on.
🎯 Want to Stream These Movies?
We’ll be building a watch list with Amazon links (and maybe even a printable scorecard for your kids to rate them). Stay tuned, and check back at NTXSelectBaseball.com for updates!