I saw “42” at the movies over the weekend and can honestly say it is a must-see for any true fan of baseball history. Even if you are not a sports fan, the film has enough draw to keep you interested.

It was while watching Harrison Ford, portrayed as Brooklyn Dodgers’ general manager Branch Rickey, that I came up with an idea for this column.

I’ve seen a lot of baseball movies over the years and some of them have unforgettable and in some cases, hysterical characters. Here are my favorites.

Bull Durham’s Crash Davis and Nuke LaLoosh — Played by Kevin Costner and Tim Robbins, respectively, these two have completely different outlooks on baseball while playing for a minor league team.

Davis is a veteran catcher with a short stint in the Major Leagues on his resume. For him, baseball is a science with a bevy of do’s and don’ts. In his mind, follow them and you have a chance to succeed.

LaLoosh is a young pitcher who has two things on his mind, baseball and women, and usually not in that order. He has incredible talent, but also carries the focus of a housefly. His control is erratic at best. Just ask the team’s mascot, who is whacked by one of his pitches.

The Bad News Bears’ Kelly Leak — At the beginning of the movie, Leak makes quick cash by hustling people playing air hockey at the local arcade. “We go a dollar a game here,” he tells all challengers. He is also known to the local kids as a ruthless loan shark. You know, your typical 12-year old.

The Bears convince Leak to join the team and he turns the hapless little leaguers into title contenders.

Major League’s Willie Mays Hayes — Played by Wesley Snipes, Hayes makes the Cleveland Indians’ roster based solely on his incredible speed. But at the beginning of the season, his production is far outweighed by his hot-dog style.

He has trouble hitting anything other than foul balls directly above home plate and his slides often leave him a good 12 inches from the base. Hayes drastically improves as spring turns into summer and is vital to Cleveland’s playoff run.

The Rookie’s Jim Morris — Dennis Quaid plays Morris in this movie based on a true story. Morris is a high school teacher and baseball coach in Texas whose dream of playing in the majors seemingly died years before following an arm injury.

Unsatisfied with his team’s lackluster play, Morris uses stern words to try and motivate his players, who make a deal with their coach. If they rebound to win the district title, he must attend a major-league tryout.

The squad holds up its end of the bargain and Morris, now in his mid-30s, goes to a Tampa Bay Devil Rays tryout, where his pitches are clocked in the upper-90s. The showing earns him a shot with Tampa Bay and he ends up playing two seasons with the team.

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.