The Best Films About Little League Baseball. In this series of sports-themed articles, we’ll be reviewing the best sports films from auto racing and baseball to tennis and surfing. These Best Of lists will include both popular and lesser-known films from a specific sports film subgenre and our plan is to release each list monthly near a major sporting event.
Baseball is often cited as America’s Pastime due to its cultural relevancy in the U.S. and its popularity with youth leagues and Little League Baseball. Over the past several decades, baseball has integrated itself into the lives of children throughout the nation from their early years in tee-ball to the upper levels of little league baseball during adolescence. Not only has baseball been a popular sports pastime for U.S. youths but has also steadily gained influence in other countries throughout Central and South America and in Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea.
With the latest 2026 Little League World Series kicking off on August 19 -30, we thought it would be a great time to look at all the sports films about little league baseball. From the notorious (and often hilarious) Bad News Bears to the inspirational story of the Monterrey, Mexico team in the 1957 Little League World Series, we’ll cover every subgenre film that fueled the aspirations of children everywhere to one day make it to the Major Leagues.
Once we’ve completed the list of best films by individual sport, we’ll have a cumulative article with the absolute 50 best sports films. For now, you can view our tentative schedule below and we’ll try to fit in some articles for some other sports such as Volleyball and Rowing that aren’t typically depicted in many films:
- Best Films About Football
- Best Films About Baseball
- Best Films About Surfing
- Best Films About Basketball
- Best Films About Summer Olympic Sports
- Best Films About Soccer
- Best Films About Running
- Best Films About Tennis
- Best Films About Auto Racing
- Best Films About Hockey
- Best Films About Wrestling
- Best Films About Winter Olympic Sports
- Best Films About Boxing
- Best Films About Golf
- Best Films About MMA
- Best Films About Extreme Sports
- Best Films About Little League Baseball
- The 50 Best Sports Films
For our rankings we’re going to use some criteria to help define and refine our list. First, the film must primarily be about little league baseball. We’ll also include any forms of youth baseball such as ‘sandlot’ baseball games by children in their neighborhoods.
Second, though we’ll primarily cover little league baseball, there are a few films about little leaguers that play on Major League Baseball teams and incorporate elements of little league play in the adult game. Examples of films here include Rookie of the Year (1993) and Little Big League (1994). Both films are primarily about professional baseball teams in the Chicago Cubs and Minnesota Twins but feature young children in the sport and utilize ‘little league’ plays to determine outcomes of the games. However, we are going to exclude a popular baseball film for children and families, Angels in the Outfield (1994), as it’s a fantasy-based film that doesn’t have themes of little league baseball.
Third, we’ll also include films where the film might start in the little leagues but feature the ascent of a child to higher levels of baseball competition. These films are often biopics and one example we will list here is The Hill (2023).
Fourth, though most of the films on this list are family friendly, there are a few films that are more adult in nature such as All Square (2018), All Square is about a bookie that causes chaos in his neighborhood by allowing people to bet on local little league baseball games. This isn’t a family film per say as the film carries a TV-MA rating and includes mature themes that aren’t appropriate for younger children.
And fifth, we had to follow our rule for all of KBZ’s film listings where we only list films that have a 4.0/10 or higher rating and were made after 1970.
Our complete list of Sports Dramas features over 697+ films from 1942 – 2026 and our complete list of Sports Comedies features over 313+ films from 1961 – 2026. You can also refer to our previous article of The 30 Best Films About Baseball that includes an overview of every film involving baseball. And as a reminder, you can also subscribe to our newsletter to get updated as we release future articles on each sport and add the latest and greatest subgenre films to our collection.
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The Best Films About Little League Baseball
Films that didn’t make our list (and only for completists): Here Come the Tigers (1978), The Bad News Bears Go to Japan (1978), Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003), Home Run Showdown (2012), Dealin’ with Idiots (2013), Home Run (2013), Season of Miracles (2013) and Twelve (2019).
Honorable Mentions: The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training (1977), Aunt Mary (1979), Amazing Grace and Chuck (1987), Past the Bleachers (1995), Perfect Game (2000), Finding Buck McHenry (2000), The Sandlot 2 (2005), Bad News Bears (2005), The Sandlot: Heading Home (2007) and Los Fabulosos Ma Mejores (2015).
Plot: After dedicating the season to a teammate’s ailing father, a group of underdog youth baseball players makes it all the way to the 2002 Little League World Series, culminating in a record-breaking showdown.
KBZ’s Take: Like most films, and especially with films about baseball, You Gotta Believe features familiar sports subgenre tropes and is very predictable. However, despite the film’s predictability, it is watchable with some above average performances from both Luke Wilson and Greg Kinnear.
One note: though this is a family film, it does deal with mature themes involving cancer.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#9
All Square
Plot: A down-on-his-luck bookie befriends an ex-girlfriend’s son and gets the bright idea to take bets on his youth league baseball games; only to realize he’s killed what’s pure about the sport as the games turn ugly when money is on the line.
KBZ’s Take: We mentioned earlier that some films on this list are not family friendly and All Square is one of those films. With a TV-MA rating, the film tackles mature themes including gambling and the eventual breakdown of civility in a small town.
With that said, the films dark comedic humor takes center stage as bookie John (Micheal Kelly) begins to realize there are some things in this world that are not worth betting on.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#8
Benched
Plot: Legendary baseball coach, Don, gets inexperienced Michael as his new assistant coach. As their lives dramatically change, the coaches must come together to help their team win.
KBZ’s Take: We’re listing this film as it primarily focuses on the dynamics between coaches of a little league baseball team. Though the film likely won’t be as entertaining for children, for any adult that’s volunteered to coach youth baseball, it’s required viewing. You’ll quickly find yourself taking sides with the different coaching (and parenting) philosophies of the dueling coaches.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#7
The Hill
Plot: The true story of Rickey Hill, the son of a traveling pastor who overcomes physical obstacles to pursue his dream of playing baseball in the major leagues.
KBZ’s Take: The Hill is one of the sports biopics on our list that features a healthy amount of time on Rickey Hill’s involvement in youth baseball (albeit in the sandlot form of the game). Though the film is a bit predictable and heavy on the melodrama, it is worth checking out by any fan of the subgenre. Even though you’ll likely know what’s coming, it’ll be hard not to enjoy the third act (and baseball sequence) that is emotional and inspirational as some of the best films of the subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: When the owner of the Minnesota Twins passes away, he bequeaths the team to his preteen grandson. The newly minted head honcho quickly appoints himself manager, causing unrest in an organization that struggles to take orders from a 12-year-old.
KBZ’s Take: The 1990s featured a string of baseball-themed family films and Little Big League is the first film to make an appearance on our list. Though it’s not explicitly about little league baseball, it does feature some little league plays that make their way in some major league games at the suggestion of new 12-year-old owner, Billy (Luke Edwards).
Though some adults might find the film childish and predictable, it is worth watching for the appearance of 1990s MLB stars such as Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, Rafael Palmeiro and others.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: A freak accident causes 12-year-old Little League player Henry (Thomas Ian Nicholas) to become such a powerful and accurate pitcher that the Chicago Cubs sign the junior high student to a contract. Unprepared for such a high-pressure environment, Henry falters until aging fastballer Chet Steadman (Gary Busey) takes him under his wing and teaches him how to play in the big leagues. Meanwhile, his mother’s venal boyfriend (Bruce Altman) tries to sell Henry’s contract to a hated opposing team.
KBZ’s Take: Despite mixed reviews from critics and an underwhelming theatrical run in the 1990s, Rookie of the Year is still one of the best films of the subgenre 30 years later. Though most of the comedy is slapstick in nature and its fantasy-based premise becomes repetitive at times, it’s still a fun film that most families (and especially young children involved with little league baseball) will likely enjoy (and watch repeatedly).
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#4
Hardball
Plot: An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend.
KBZ’s Take: Despite the very formulaic and predictable plot of Hardball, there’s something about the film we’ve always found endearing and inspirational. We’ll be the first to agree that the film doesn’t feature one of the better performances by Keanu Reeves, the gambling subplot falters multiple times and you’ll be able to guess the outcome of the third act within the first few minutes of the film.
But somehow director Brian Robbins makes it all work just like he did with the similarly predictable Varsity Blues (1999). Like that film’s final game, you’ll get caught up in the sports action of the film’s third act, which will have you quickly disregarding all the previous warts of the film.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: Based on a true story, a group of boys from Monterrey, Mexico who become the first non-U.S. team to win the Little League World Series.
KBZ’s Take: Another family film on our list and one of the most predictable. But in this case, the predictability is based on history and the unbelievable run of the scrappy little leaguers from Monterrey.
The Monterrey team’s accomplishments are well known (no spoilers here) and despite the film featuring an abundance of sports films tropes, it does an excellent job of recreating the final game. We would also highly recommend the film for any adult coaching a little league team to show their players that anything is possible in baseball, even against the greatest of odds.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#2
The Sandlot
Plot: During a summer of friendship and adventure, one boy becomes a part of the gang, nine boys become a team and their leader becomes a legend by confronting the terrifying mystery beyond the right field wall.
KBZ’s Take: Sports fans of a certain age would likely have The Sandlot ranked as #1 on our list here – and we wouldn’t disagree with that. We just felt there was one film that has stood the test of time and is the first sports film that a parent will show their child to get them interested in baseball.
With that said, The Sandlot is the other film that is an introduction for children to the camaraderie and spirit of youth baseball set against very funny coming-of-age themes.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: An aging, down-on-his-luck ex-minor leaguer coaches a team of misfits in an ultra-competitive California little league.
KBZ’s Take: The Bad News Bears is the best little league baseball film of all time – with one huge caveat. This is a film only you can decide if it’s appropriate to show to your children. The film’s language (and casual racist remarks from the 1970s) will be uncomfortable for some in this day and age and the film includes some serious parental discipline sequences that are even more outdated 50 years later.
However, there’s no denying that this is the film about little league baseball from the different personalities that define a team to the ‘adult’ coach who struggles to understand his players (and all the issues involved with a younger generation). This cast of memorable characters including Kelly, Tanner, Amanda, Engelberg, Lupus and others are still the most memorable little leaguers in the subgenre after all these years and it’s a testament to the one film that captured the dynamics of little league baseball in all its heroic (and raunchy) glory.
Additional Lists: The 30 Best Films About Baseball #4
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
