Crash Davis

The owner of the all-time greatest monologue in the history of all-time great monologues, the Crash/Nuke relationship is a perfect metaphor for generational transition and an excellent example of how the mentor/protege dynamic should work. I still go to local minor league games in hopes of finding the passion and romanticism for baseball that was depicted in Bull Durham. Never find it, though.

I read this morning that a Bull Durham 2 is in the works, and I’m not entirely sure how I feel about that. Part of me would love to see Costner channel a 20-year-later Davis— I can just picture him managing some third-rate minor league team in his sausage stained wife-beater, hitting infield grounders between sips of canned PBR— but the other part of me knows this story should be left alone. For one, I ain’t buying if they try selling Crash and Susan Sarandon’s Annie as still being a couple (that relationship would have fizzled out quicker than your average John Mayer relationship). Second, there’s no plausible reason for Nuke grinding it out in the minors. Even if he is retired and trying to remain in the game as a coach, he would have made enough lettuce in the bigs to live comfortably while doing so. I just don’t see how they can recapture the same gritty, everyman feel that Bull Durham had.

I guess what I’m saying is I’m scared it will end up being as bad as Major League 3. But then again, maybe it will be as surprisingly enjoyable as Major League 2.

I’ll be hoping for the latter. Meat.