One does not have to be a sports fan, or a baseball fan-atic, to thoroughly enjoy FASTBALL, a documentary which has just been released to home entertainment. FASTBALL offers up a knowing portrait of baseball in the 21st century. Now sure, a major part of that portrait is the importance of a pitcher challenging a batter by throwing a baseball 100-plus miles per hour. But on a broader scale, FASTBALL offers an overview of how the world is constantly, endlessly changing, on so many levels. Plus, that change should not be judged, particularly by those who have been around for decades and who fondly recall what the world was like in the so-called “good old days.”
The film draws you in immediately as it centers on the heralded fastball pitchers, from Walter Johnson and Bob Feller to Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson to Nolan Ryan and Aroldis Chapman. Dozens of ballplayers are interviewed, from current superstars-- this list begins with Justin Verlander, David Price, Bryce Harper, Andrew McCutchen, and Derek Jeter-- to such “old-timers” as Goose Gossage, Mike Schmidt, Ernie Banks, Bob Gibson, Henry Aaron, and so many more. The sheer power of the fastball from the pitcher’s perspective is illustrated by David Price, who declares: “There’s no better feeling than throwing a fastball past someone.” Goose Gossage adds that, for the pitcher, it’s the law of the jungle. You either will eat or be eaten and he emphatically declares that, when he was on the mound, he was not going to be eaten. From the hitter’s viewpoint, the film explores the issue of a man wielding a bat at home plate and how he must transcend his fear knowing full well that what essentially is a 100-mile-per-hour rock momentarily will be coming at him.
But the most intriguing interviewee in FASTBALL is Steve Dalkowski, otherwise known as “The Fastest That Never Was.” Dalkowski, a Baltimore Orioles bush leaguer who played in the early 1960s, just may have been the hardest thrower ever but, sadly, he was unable to harness his control and he never made it to The Show. If the plight and fate of Steve Dalkowski were made into a film, who would believe it? His story is pure soap opera, but it also is pure fact.
Additionally, there is some fascinating vintage footage in FASTBALL. One dates from 1939 and, in it, Bob Feller tests the quickness of his pitch against that of a speeding motorcycle. In another, Walter Johnson-- who was the first ballplayer to have his fastball measured for its speed-- offers pitching advice to a young boy. Plus, as Bob Gibson is interviewed, he cites the racism American-style that so-defined the late 1950s and 1960s, when he was establishing himself as a future Hall of Famer.
And speaking of Hall of Famers, I queried a number of ballplayers who were present at the end of May in Cooperstown for the Hall of Fame Classic game. How did they feel about the demise of the complete game and the arrival of speed-balling youngsters who play for an inning and toss 95 or 100-mile-an-hour fastballs at batters? Their responses do not just relate to sports. They may be applied to any transformation, on any subject, during any era.
Rollie Fingers, the forever-mustachioed relief pitcher extraordinaire, declared: “It’s probably the biggest change (in the sport). It’s much more specialized, and it seems to be working.” But he added, in relation to his own career: “I don’t think I could do it.” Added borderline Hall of Famer Alan Trammell: “We all are used to the way the game was played during our era. But times change, and we have to be open-minded.” Plus, he was quick to note: “The game today is very healthy.” And Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg observed: “It’s just different today. It’s the nature of the game. There are very different arms in the bullpen, and you want to (use them). It’s a new piece to the puzzle...”
Rob Edelman has authored or edited several dozen books on film, television, and baseball. He has taught film history courses at several universities and his writing has appeared in many newspapers, magazines, and journals. His frequent collaborator is his wife, fellow WAMC film commentator Audrey Kupferberg.
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