David M. Evans' The Sandlot is easily one of the most beloved baseball films of the modern era, and strangely enough, it's now is probably a movie that today's Major League players grew up watching. Certainly adding credence to that idea is this new video recorded by members of the New York Yankees, who recreated one of the feature's best scenes.
As a fan of the New York Mets, it's kind of in my blood to feel a tad bit of scorn for the Yankees at all times, but credit is due to Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, CC Sabathia, Brian McCann, Didi Gregorius and the rest of the players in this video for making a funny, fitting tribute to The Sandlot. The short was posted by MLB.com, and while it exists as promotion for the upcoming season of Yankee baseball, it still feels like something that team did for fun.
Of course, the best way to appreciate this Sandlot parody is by comparing it side-by-side with the scene from the original 1993 movie. Thankfully, living in the internet age means we have 24/7 regular access to all of Hollywood's most memorable moments, and you can watch the comparison clip below:
It looks like Yankee teammates really wanted to get in on the video, as there are many more players featured in the "remake" than the original scene, but there are definitely points to be given out here for accuracy. The editing and framing are both on-point, as is the costuming (pay attention to Squints' glasses and all the baseball caps). They even did a not-too-shabby bit of casting considering the limited pool of "actors."
Honestly, I would love it if other baseball teams started making their own baseball movie videos. What's stopping the Cleveland Indians from doing a tribute to Major League? Maybe the Tampa Bay Rays can do a scene out of Bull Durham. Maybe the Mets can take a swing at The Bad News Bears. I guess the only one that would probably be out of the question would be the Chicago White Sox recreating a scene from Eight Men Out.
Major League Baseball is currently in the midst of Spring Training, but the 2015 season is scheduled to kick off with the St. Louis Cardinals facing off against the Chicago Cubs on April 5th. For those of you who don't care about baseball, but love The Sandlot, the film is now on both Blu-ray and DVD.
