Texas. Where everything is big. Except baseball. That sucks for a young boy living in Texas who loves baseball. But that's where Jimmy Morris ended up after his military dad Jim Morris Sr. (Brian Cox) was done being shipped all over the country. And Texas is where he'd stay.
Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) chased his dream of baseball as far as his fragile arm would take him, then he settled down, got married, had kids, and got a job teaching science at the local high school. He also coached the high school baseball team called the Owls.
His rag tag baseball team was entertaining. He made a bargain with his team that he'd tryout for a Major League baseball team if they won the district championship, which infused some excitement and drama into their baseball season. The team urged Jim to tryout after they saw him throwing fastballs somewhere in the upper 90's. They won their district championship and Jim Morris tried out for the Tampa Bay Devilrays (now known as simply the Rays).
"The Rookie" is about never being too old to chase your dream, which is a wee bit easier when your dream is to be a professional pitcher and you can throw 98 MPH. For all of you baseball novices, 98 MPH is extremely fast. In 2002, when this movie was made, there were probably only a few pitchers that could throw that fast (and none of them come to mind). Nowadays just about every reliever can top that.
The decision for Jim wasn't an easy one. By this time, he was over 40 and had a wife and kids to think about. It didn't help that his wife Lorri (Rachel Griffiths) was less than excited about the prospects. But the movie isn't called "The Rookie" for nothing. They pretty much give the ending away with the title. If you like feel good stories and sports movies, then this'll do.
Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) chased his dream of baseball as far as his fragile arm would take him, then he settled down, got married, had kids, and got a job teaching science at the local high school. He also coached the high school baseball team called the Owls.
His rag tag baseball team was entertaining. He made a bargain with his team that he'd tryout for a Major League baseball team if they won the district championship, which infused some excitement and drama into their baseball season. The team urged Jim to tryout after they saw him throwing fastballs somewhere in the upper 90's. They won their district championship and Jim Morris tried out for the Tampa Bay Devilrays (now known as simply the Rays).
"The Rookie" is about never being too old to chase your dream, which is a wee bit easier when your dream is to be a professional pitcher and you can throw 98 MPH. For all of you baseball novices, 98 MPH is extremely fast. In 2002, when this movie was made, there were probably only a few pitchers that could throw that fast (and none of them come to mind). Nowadays just about every reliever can top that.
The decision for Jim wasn't an easy one. By this time, he was over 40 and had a wife and kids to think about. It didn't help that his wife Lorri (Rachel Griffiths) was less than excited about the prospects. But the movie isn't called "The Rookie" for nothing. They pretty much give the ending away with the title. If you like feel good stories and sports movies, then this'll do.