THE ROOKIE

September 02, 2023

Good evening. This is Dead Legends. The newsletter that’s always feeling romantic about baseball.

Let's dive in.

Today's story is about a 35-year-old physics teacher who got a big-league contract.

Jim Morris was born on January 28, 1965, in Brownfield, TX.

His life was the inspiration for the movie "The Rookie."

Morris got drafted 466th overall by the Yankees in the ’82 amateur baseball draft, but he didn't end up signing.

In '83, he got selected fourth overall out of Ranger College in the January Secondary draft by the Milwaukee Brewers.

Unfortunately, he got hit with some arm injuries in the minors and missed the entire '86 season.

He got released by the Brewers, never making it past single-A.

After that, he lived a pretty quiet life.

Morris went on to pursue a career in education, becoming a high school physics teacher, and even coached the baseball team.

It was during his tenure coaching the Reagan County Owls that his life changed forever.

Morris made a promise to his team that he would try out for the MLB if they made it to the playoffs, and they did.

Jim kept his end of the bargain; trying out for the Devil Rays in ’99.

He was 35, completely out of shape, and hadn't toed a big-league rubber in a DECADE.

To everyone's surprise, he lit up the radar gun; hitting 98 mph several times.

Jim was as shocked as the scouts - after ten years of retirement and four arm surgeries, his fastball had gained by about ten miles per hour.

The math just doesn't add up.

The Devil Rays signed Morris almost immediately, and he spent the summer in a minor league farm camp.

After three months of intense work, Morris was called up to the show, becoming baseball's oldest rookie pitcher in nearly 30 years.

He made his debut against the Rangers and struck out the first hitter he faced.

It's the stuff dreams are made of.

Jim played one more year, but his arm injuries caught back up to him.

Either way, his story inspired millions of people.

"The Rookie" has grossed $80 million worldwide, and remains one of the all-time classic baseball movies.

BASEBALL TRIVIA

If you're just joining us, we play this game every day where we try to find the weirdest names throughout baseball history.

Why? Don't ask us, it's just something we like to do.

If you've been rocking with us for awhile now, you know what time it is.

Today's winner is:

Known mostly for his defense, Ely debuted in the major leagues at age 30.

He played over 1,000 games in the show, and even had a chance to play under the legend Connie Mack.

Bones was the shortstop for the Pirates before a guy named Honus Wagner came along.

Can't even be mad if Honus Wagner takes your spot.

If you like this story, check out some of our past favorites: