History Film / BullDurham

** At the end, Nuke is called up to the majors from the A-ball Durham Bulls, having never gone through the AA or AAA levels. This is not unheard-of--Minnesota Twins shortstop Jorge Polanco made his major league debut as a single-A call-up--but it ''is'' incredibly rare. More likely he would have been moved up during the season if he'd been dominating A ball. You can't use the Majors' expanded September roster as a reason since the Bulls' season wasn't over. Minor Leagues that are affiliated with Major League teams end their season in August ''because'' of the 40-man Major League rosters that were in use before 2020.[[note]]It's not unheard of for players to get called all the way up from A-ball.[[note]]Teams are still allowed to have 40 players signed to major-league contracts, but their September active rosters are now restricted to exactly 28 players. During the last few years of the 40-man active roster rule, some teams expanded their rosters to the full 40, while others called up far fewer players.[[/note]] This plot point would actually make sense nowadays because the Bulls became a Triple-A team in 1998, which ironically was in large part due to their brand recognition from this movie making them arguably the best-known minor league team in the country.

-->'''Annie''': Walt Whitman once said, "I see great things in baseball. It's our game, the American game. It will repair our losses and be a blessing to us." [[GeniusBonus You could look it up]].

It's the Carolina Leagues and the last-place [[UsefulNotes/MinorLeagueBaseball Durham Bulls]] are working out a rookie pitcher Ebby [=LaLoosh=] (Creator/TimRobbins). [=LaLoosh=] has a "million-dollar arm and a five-cent head," so the ownership sends down "Crash" Davis (Creator/KevinCostner), an aging catcher who'd been working his whole adult life to make the Majors, [[TheMentor to teach and guide the new kid]]. Angry he's been ''sent down'' instead of up, Crash almost refuses to take the assignment to help the new "[[NewMeat Meat]]".

It's the Carolina Leagues and the last-place Durham Bulls are working out a rookie pitcher Ebby [=LaLoosh=] (Creator/TimRobbins). [=LaLoosh=] has a "million-dollar arm and a five-cent head," so the ownership sends down "Crash" Davis (Creator/KevinCostner), an aging catcher who'd been working his whole adult life to make the Majors, [[TheMentor to teach and guide the new kid]]. Angry he's been ''sent down'' instead of up, Crash almost refuses to take the assignment to help the new "[[NewMeat Meat]]".

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: [[spoiler:Nuke is shown in the major leagues with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays getting interviewed by a reporter, and rattling off the audience-pleasing StockQuotes that Crash taught him. Crash hits his record-breaking home run and promptly quits his new team, and returns to Durham to await Annie on her porch, intending to start a relationship with her and embark on a second career as a team manager.]]

''Bull Durham'' is a 1988 Sports/Romance comedy by Creator/RonShelton.

* FourthDateMarriage: Millie, Annie's friend and fellow groupie, has basically slept with half the Carolina League right up until she tries hooking up with the overtly religious Jimmy. After just one night, the two of them get engaged.

* MondegreenGag: Nuke botches the lyrics to "Try a Little Tenderness". "She may get wooly..." [[note]]It's actually "She may be weary..."[[/note]]

** At the end, Nuke is called up to the majors from the A-ball Durham Bulls, having never gone through the AA or AAA levels. This is extremely improbable as he probably would have been moved up during the season if he'd been dominating A ball. You can't use the Majors' expanded September roster as a reason since the Bulls' season wasn't over. Minor Leagues that are affiliated with Major League teams end their season in August ''because'' of the 40-man Major League rosters that were in use before 2020.[[note]]It's not unheard of for players to get called all the way up from A-ball - Minnesota Twins shortstop Jorge Polanco made his major league debut as a single-A call-up - but it is incredibly rare.[[/note]][[labelnote:note 2]]Teams are still allowed to have 40 players signed to major-league contracts, but their September active rosters are now restricted to exactly 28 players. During the last few years of the 40-man active roster rule, some teams expanded their rosters to the full 40, while others called up far fewer players.[[/labelnote]]

* AsHimself: Max Patkin receives this credit.

* LoveTriangle: {{Reconstructed}}. Annie's practice is to pick one member of the Durham Bulls to be her lover every baseball season, and she decides that this year it's between Nuke and Crash. Crash, however, balks, since at his age[[note]]he's suggested to be in his forties or so, though Creator/KevinCostner was only 33 when the film came out[[/note]] he doesn't "try out" for things anymore, leaving Nuke with Annie by default. However, Crash is still attracted to Annie, and Annie eventually realizes that her attitude drove away the man actually worth keeping. [[spoiler:The film ends with Nuke leaving for the major leagues, and Crash starting a relationship with Annie and planning to embark on a second career as a coach.]]