baseball

Remembering Eight Men Out

Remembering Eight Men Out

Baseball fans looking for something to watch during the COVID-19 lockdown might turn to films about the game to help scratch that itch. Opinions are strong over which movies about America’s pastime are the best, but there is an overall consensus on what the roster should be.

Casual fans of the game know Bull Durham, the No.1 pick at MLB.com, as well as the film review site Rotten Tomatoes. The rest of the lineup includes, in no particular order,  A League of Their Own, The Natural, Field of Dreams, The Sandlot, Moneyball, The Bad News Bears, and of course, Major League. One highly-rated baseball film that gets overlooked, though, is Eight Men Out. It comes in at No. 5 on the MLB.com list, No. 7 on the Bleacher Reports rankings and No. 12 at Rotten Tomatoes.

The film, based on the 1963 book of the same name by Eliot Asinof, has a Cincinnati connection both in plot and production. The book and film are about the 1919 Chicago Black Sox scandal, which saw members of the American League champion White Sox accused of conspiring with gamblers to throw the World Series to the Cincinnati Reds.

The film was released in 1988 and was primarily filmed in Indianapolis, Louisville, and Cincinnati, the latter, oddly, filled in for Chicago. Indeed, the opening scene was shot in front of the Woodward Theater on Main Street, just two blocks from Cincy Shirts’ present-day OTR location. The rest of that scene was shot along 14th Street. Many of the movie’s other exterior shots were filmed in the area, as well as across the river in Covington.

The scenes at the New York horse racing track were shot at Churchill Downs in Louisville. Most of the train travel sequences were filmed at Louisville’s Union Station. The rest of the train-related bits were filmed in Covington, including those on the train cars.

The game scenes were filmed in Indianapolis at old Bush Stadium. The former home of the AAA Indianapolis Indians, as well as the Negro League Indianapolis Clowns, the ballpark had to double for Comiskey Park in Chicago as well as Redland (later called Crosley) Field in Cincinnati. 

The Indians moved to Victory Field in 1996. After falling into a state of disrepair, the property was converted into a baseball stadium-shaped apartment complex, complete with stadium lights and a restored diamond.

Though partially filmed in the Queen City, and based on an event involving the Reds, Cincinnati figured very little into the film. Even during the game scenes, Reds players were hardly seen and had no lines. That makes sense, though, considering the film focused on the White Sox players and how they were implicated in the fix. 

Though found not guilty in a jury trial in 1920, the eight players were banned for life from baseball by the sports first commissioner Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis. Born in Millvale, Ohio (between Cincinnati and Oxford), Landis accepted the job only after he was granted ultimate authority over the sport by the owners, who were desperate to clean up the game's image. The guilt of six of the eight is unquestioned. “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and Buck Weaver knew of the plan but were not part of it, with Jackson allegedly receiving a payment of $5,000. He later recanted this admission.

The upshot for Cincinnati is the team’s first World Series win came with an asterisk. It would be another 21 years before the club returned to the Fall Classic, capturing a World Championship over the Detroit Tigers.

Eight Men Out can be streamed for free on a variety of platforms including, Tubi and Pluto TV. It’s also available to stream free on Amazon Prime. 




Reading next

Sam the Smoking Chimp Cincy Shirts Podcast
Ron Ervin Actor Comedian Cincy Shirts Podcast

18 comments

Debbie Arnold

Debbie Arnold

I am out here to speed this good news to the entire world on how I got help from Dr Kachi a great lottery spell caster that will help you cast a lottery spell and give you the rightful numbers to win the lottery, I didn’t believe lottery spell at first but as life got harder i decided to give a try, I spend so much money on tickets just to make sure I win. until the day I met Dr KACHI online, which so many people have talked good about, that he is very great when it comes to casting lottery spell, he told me the necessary things to do and behold it was like a magic, i won $20 Million Dollars Florida Powerball Double Play with the numbers Dr Kachi gave to me. his a really trustful person worthy and reliable, i am sharing this to you who have been finding it so hard to win the lottery, Thanks you Dr. Kachi who helped me contact email drkachispellcast@gmail.com OR Text Number and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 Visit his Website:: https://drkachispellcaster.wixsite.com/my-site

ashley walters

ashley walters

this is the best spell caster i know He cast spells for different purposes like(1) If you want your ex back.
(2) if you always have bad dream
(3) You want to be promoted in your office.
(4) You want women/men to run after you.
(5) If you want a child.
(6) You want to be rich.
(7) You want to tie your husband/wife to be yours forever.
(8) If you need financial assistance.
(9) HIV/AIDS CURE
(10) is the only answer to that your problem of winning the lottery

Contact him today on oseremenspelltemple@gmail.com

Monica Albareda

Monica Albareda

No one else can help you fix your relationship and love problems better than Dr Isikolo (https://isikolotemple.com)
It will amaze you to know that everything so many people have been testifying about DR ISIKOLO is nothing but the truth. My husband left me and my kids because we had so many fights and arguments. His people were also against my marriage with him. I loved him so much and had great hope that we will build a bright future together. I waited for 6 months and he never returned back to me. So i had to contact DR ISIKOLO who did everything in his power to reunite us and restore the love and happiness we once shared. He returned back home to us after 48 hours just as DR ISIKOLO assured me. You too can get this great help and live to be grateful to him because he never disappoints anyone. contact Him email: isikolosolutionhome@gmail.com You can also WhatsApp him on +2348133261196

Natasha Thompson

Natasha Thompson

My name is Natasha Thompson from the USA/Texas.. Am so overwhelmed with gratitude to let the world know how Dr Kachi, the great spell caster changed my life for good. It all started when I lost my job and I was down financially and emotionally because I couldn’t be able provide for my two kids and staying home all day Jobless it’s not easy until I was checking on the internet when I saw a series of testimonies hearing people winning the Powerball lottery, I didn’t believed, but being poor no job you have no option. I gave it a try and I contacted Dr Kachi who told me what i have to do before I can become a big lottery winner and I accepted. He made special prayers for me in his temple and gave me the required numbers to play the lottery game and when I used the numbers to play it, I won a massive $344.6 million Powerball jackpot. I was so happy and I choose to review my winning in any platform, I would love other people to seek help from Dr Kachi through Text and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 or email drkachispellcast@gmail.com

Morgan

Morgan

With so much in my heart I am here to express myself on how Priest Salami saved my marriage from divorce. Myself and my husband were having some misunderstanding and it was tearing our marriage apart to the extent my husband was seeking a divorce. So I have no option other than to go to the internet to seek a solution to my problem. It was there I came across Priest Salami details and about how he has helped a lot of people by restoring their relationship. I contacted Priest Salami and in less than 48 hours my husband cancelled the divorce papers. Now myself and my husband live together in peace and harmony all thanks to Priest Salami for saving my marriage from breaking up. Priest Salami contact information are via email: purenaturalhealer@gmail.com. Whatsapp number: +2348143757229

Leave a comment

This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.