★★★½ (3½ out of 4)
If you build it, they will come. That “Field of Dreams” quote applies neatly to “Eephus,” a small-town baseball movie that first-time director Carson Lund has built so fans who live the sport and love it like the teams in the movie will come and share their joy. Nothing major happens. The ghost of Babe Ruth doesn’t descend from the clouds to join the team for the big game. “Eephus” stays proudly amateur league, but the payoff in quiet emotion is pro to the max.
That’s just part of the reason why “Eephus” received two nominations for the 2026 Film Independent Spirit Awards: the John Cassavetes Prize for features under $1 million and best editing for Lund himself, who wrote the script with Michael Basta and Nate Fisher. The award rightly recognizes “Eephus’”strong craft, celebrating New England filmmaking and the dedicated local talent involved.
Nothing happens in “Eephus” and it’s still one of the best damn baseball movies ever made.
“Eephus” isn’t a Kevin Costner fantasy epic or a documentary. Actors play the main roles in this fictional tale about the final game of a recreational New England baseball league. For strict honesty, it should be mentioned that Bill Lee, a.k.a. “Spaceman,” the famous left-handed pitcher who played for Boston in the 1970s, portrays a minor character in “Eephus.” Oh, and yeah, a radio announcer named Branch Moreland is voiced by the legendary documentarian Frederick Wiseman, which is a blessing in any capacity.
Set in a no-biggie Massachusetts town about an hour’s drive from Boston in the 1990s, the movie pulls focus on two bands of brothers playing Soldier’s FieId. It’s the Adler's Paint baseball team, led by Ed Mortainian (Keith William Richards), facing off with the Riverdogs, led by Graham Morris (Stephen Radochia), in one last game before their ballfield is demolished to make room for —no, not a lousy mall—but a much-needed new public school. So hold the boos.
For those not up on the term, an “eephus” is one of the rarest pitches thrown in baseball, and it is known for its exceptionally low speed and ability to catch a hitter off guard. That’s pretty close to the effect this movie will have on you, as it takes its sweet time over a longOctober day’s journey into night to work its hilarious and heartfelt way into the softer places of your heart.
Like most men, the team members portrayed here are hardly demonstrative with their feelings. That doesn’t mean they don’t have them. And watching these bonds emerge is an unalloyed pleasure. The players range from college kids to pot-bellied middle-agers, spitting, smoking and pounding beers, as they watch a time and a place fade before their eyes.
Of course, you’ll cry since the ambling pace of baseball allows memories to come through, thoughts to intercede, anecdotes about busting balls to recall and savor. Nothing and everything happens in “Eephus,” until you realize that you’ve just spent one hour and 36 minutes getting lost in one of the best damn baseball movies ever made.