Sports Legend Revealed: The movie ‘Major League’ originally had a twist ending
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BASEBALL LEGEND: The film Major League originally had a dramatic twist at the end involving the team’s owner.
STATUS: True.
Very few movies about sports have been embraced by a sports team as much as the film Major League has been embraced by the Cleveland Indians. At the time of 1989 release of the film, the Indians were mired in one of the worst three decade patches of baseball that you could imagine. After finishing second in 1959, the Indians would not finish above third for twenty-nine of the next thirty seasons (a third place finish in 1968 would be the only break in the streak). Not only that, but when the American League went to two divisions in 1969, the Indians finished last or second-to-last in sixteen of the twenty-one seasons (up to and including 1989).
So when a film about an Indians team made up of scrappy underdogs who somehow make the playoffs after everyone counts them out, well, that’s just the sort of thing a fan base loves to embrace, and embrace them they did. And when the actual Indians team started actually winning in the 1990s (including five straight division titles and a trip to the World Series in 1995 AND 1997), it was almost as if the film blessed the Indians (sort of like Jo-Bu blessing Pedro Cerrano’s bat)! So even today, when the Indians are once again in pretty bad shape, you’ll see promotional giveaways of Major League-related memorabilia at Indians games.
However much of a sports film classic Major League is, there’s always been a pretty major plot hole in the film. First off, if Rachel Phelps (the owner of the team, who is trying to get out of her lease with the stadium so that she can move the team to Florida, so she plots to make the team so bad that it will fail to make the minimum attendance requirements within the lease) is so set against the team winning, why not just cut the good players or send them to the minors? Secondly, once it is evident that the team will meet the minimum requirements, why does Phelps (who is played by Margaret Whitton) continue to rally against the team when going to the playoffs will make her more money than not going to the playoffs?
Well, screenwriter David S. Ward had a very good explanation for that - you see, in the original script, Phelps was secretly trying to help the team!
Phelps responds that she WANTED Donovan to tell Brown, because she knew Brown would use that information to motivate the team. Brown incredulously asks, ‘ You tryin’ to make me believe you wanted us to win all along?’ After she nods, she explains her plan:
We were broke. We couldn’t afford anything better. Donald [her late husband who she inherited the team from] left the team nearly bankrupt. If we’d had another losing season, I would have had to sell the team. I knew we couldn’t win with the team we had, so I decided to bring in new players and see how they’d do with the proper motivation. There was never any offer from Miami. I made it all up.
When he doubts her, she points out the plot problem I mentioned earlier, if she wanted them to lose, why not just send the best players down to the minors? Phelps then basically reveals that she discovered ‘Moneyball’ years before Billy Beane did, as she explains how she put the team together:
You think this was all an accident? I personally scouted every member of this team, except Hayes, of course [Willie Hayes, played by Wesley Snipes, was a walk on to the team]. He was a surprise. They all had flaws which concealed their real talent, or I wouldn’t have been able to get them. But I knew if anyone could straighten them out, you could. And if you tell them any of this, I will fire you.
and as he shakes his head in disbelief, she tells him, ‘I love this team, Lou. Go get ‘em tonight.’
The scene was filmed, but test audiences reacted poorly to it. Basically, they had gotten so used to disliking her the whole movie that they were not prepared for her suddenly to be a ‘good guy.’ So the producers dropped the scene and filmed some additional scenes of Phelps reacting to the Indians’ success with dismay (as naturally, they do win the division and make the playoffs).
Isn’t it amazing how much that would have changed the way you watched that film? The alternate ending is available on the Major League: Wild Thing Edition DVD. Sadly, while I was working on this legend, actor James Gammon passed away. He was an impressive actor - may he rest in peace.
-- Brian Cronin
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