Members of the Portland Mavericks. (PHOTO: Netflix)
The Battered Bastards of Baseball, a new documentary that will debut on Netflix on July 11, recaps the incredible story of the minor league Portland Mavericks.
Founded in 1973 by baseball-mad Bonanza actor Bing Russell, the Mavericks played in the Class A Northwest League despite no affiliation with a Major League franchise.
Playing against highly touted prospects, Russell’s group of has-beens and misfits produced winning records in all five of their seasons before the Class AAA Pacific Coast League expanded back into Portland, paying Russell a record $206,000 for the territorial rights.
Through original game footage and contemporary interviews with key figures in Mavericks history, filmmakers Chapman and Maclain Way — two of Russell’s grandsons — expose the team’s countless quirks and the secrets to its unlikely success.
Though some details are embellished, the film presents a thorough and enjoyable retelling of the Mavericks’ odd wrinkle in baseball’s timeline. The whole thing is well worth watching, but until then, here are six astonishing facts about the Portland Mavericks from The Battered Bastards of Baseball.
1. They invented Big League Chew
Pitcher Jim Bouton with the Portland Mavericks. (PHOTO: Netflix)
It’s true. Mavericks pitcher Rob Nelson conceived a bubblegum alternative to chewing tobacco while in the bullpen, and one of his teammates — controversial former Yankee Jim Bouton — brought it to Wrigley.
2. Their biggest star has been missing since 1984
This one’s strange and sad: According to the film, fleet-footed outfielder Reggie Thomas was rumored to be an FBI informant and has been missing since 1984. Thomas’ baseball-reference.com page says he died at age 34 in July, 1980.
3. Their batboy became an Academy Award nominee
Former batboy Todd Field, who provides some of the documentary’s funniest and most insightful quotes, grew up to become an actor, director and screenwriter. His In the Bedroom earned five Oscar nominations in 2001.
4. Actor Kurt Russell grew up taking baseball tests
Actor/infielder Kurt Russell (l.) and his father, Bing Russell. (PHOTO: Netflix)
Kurt Russell’s boyhood as a successful child actor apparently didn’t stop him from playing a lot of baseball. Bing’s son, Kurt grew up taking long written examinations on situational baseball strategy and fielding grounders in a room in his house dedicated to just that purpose. Before joining the Mavericks, Kurt played in the Angels’ system. He later showed off his swing as Snake Plissken in Escape from New York.
5. A pitcher became a Pulitzer Prize nominee
Larry Colton played several seasons of Class AAA ball and made one Major League appearance — a two-inning relief stint with the Phillies in 1968. He joined the Mavericks after he had already become an English teacher. He has since written multiple books, including Counting Coup — a chronicle of a high-school girls’ basketball season that earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination in 2000.
6. They had a left-handed catcher
In the film, Jim Swanson claims to be the first left-handed catcher to sign a professional contract, which isn’t technically true. But he’s right that lefty catchers are exceptionally rare at every level above Little League. No lefty-throwing player has seen time behind the plate in the Majors since Benny Distefano played six innings at catcher for the 1989 Pirates.
