As the Twins' season sputters to a merciful end, it seems only fitting to focus on our neighbors, the Milwaukee Brewers, who are dominating the league. I mean, what's not to love? They're named for a profession that brings many of us much joy. The very likable Christian Yelich has returned to form. Arguably their most exciting player may be a Brewer, but he's barely old enough to have a beer. Their second in the league in both steals and hits and their starting rotation is impressive. 

So, on that note, let's take a look at one of the only movies that features our Wisconsin neighbors, Bernie Mac's "Mr. 3000."

The plot of "Mr. 3000" is actually a pretty interesting premise. What if a player retired with one of those cherished milestones like 3000 hits, but it was later discovered to be a mistake? In the case of Stan Ross, the lead character of "Mr. 3000," played by Bernie Mac, it's a crushing blow. Not only did he quit the game the day he reached the milestone, he proceeded to market himself as Mr. 3000 with an auto dealership, restaurant, and a bunch of other businesses. It was his identity and, he thought, his ticket into the baseball Hall of Fame. So, when MLB realized they'd counted wrong and he only had 2997 hits nine years later, Stan had to suit up again at the ripe old age of 47. To make it more interesting, Stan is far from beloved by pretty much anyone associated with the game because he has always been a "me first" kind of player. 

So how does Bernie Mac look playing baseball? Honestly, he's terrible. At no point does he look like he could be a legit beer league softball player. His swing is wonky and his running is far from smooth. As for the other players, it's much the same. Many of the pitches we see look like those tosses from the home run derby where a players dad is serving them up at 62 miles per hour. There are a few good plays here and there, but overall, don't search this flick out if you're in the mood for authentic baseball feel. 

How's the acting otherwise? It's pretty subpar across the board, for the most part. Brian White plays "T-Rex," the team's current superstar when Stan makes his comeback, but he's a bit over the top with his selfish childishness. The rest of the team are no-namers and none of them stand out. Angela Bassett plays Stan's love interest, "Mo," and she's actually pretty good. By far my favorite acting job in this movie is done by Paul Sorvino, who plays the Brewer's manager, Gus Panas. Gus doesn't like Stan and didn't want him back on the team and shows his displeasure by being completely blank-faced in every scene. Seriously, I don't know what they paid Sorvino, but throughout the movie he's just there...staring. At a pivotal moment towards the end of the flick, he jumps out of the dugout to defend Stan against an umpire in a Silent Bob sort of twist.

It's hard for me to really rate this movie, because while I kind of like it, I don't really like much of anything about it? I like the premise, but Bernie Mac is pretty bad, the baseball is worse, and Stan's Disney-esque transformation from a me-first player to a self-sacrificing role model on the team doesn't come off as legit. Plus, I keep thinking that Mo needs to run away and don't look back. She can do better than Stan. The big spoiler at the end of the movie is a plus for me, because I like it when movies don't do the expected thing (I won't spoil it). I also like that they incorporated one of the running sausages and he's kind of a jerk.

Run Time: 1 hr 44 min

Scorecard: Bloop single. Worth watching, but don't get too excited. 

Best line:      Tom Arnold: Hey, we're sorry about all that stuff we said before you hit that homer...
                      Stan: Yeah, you wouldn't be anywhere if it wasn't for Roseanne.