JB is a sports agent with one mission in mind…….success. He thinks he has it when working with an NFL champ, but this all crumbles when said champ opts for another agency. This leaves JB with no other options, that is, until his wheels start spinning another option reveals itself through an unlikely source.
After watching a Cricket match on TV, JB seems to think Cricket players must be good at baseball. His idea is not shared with his fellow agents or sponsor, but with a lot of convincing and his drive they all know and admire, JB is given the opportunity to prove himself. So JB ventures off to India and holds a Million Dollar Arm contest in which contestants compete for 1st and 2nd place at the fastest pitches. With astounding results, JB finds two young men who are about to have their entire world altered as they leave their small villages of India for LA. JB promises to take care of them, but doesn't realize just how much of a commitment that really is.
As you can imagine, the excitement of Rinku and Dinesh's arrival poses for lots of publicity and MLB team scouts. JB has a year to get the boys ready for the big leagues. This is no easy fete as the boys are good at throwing, but lack any baseball knowledge. JB also is distracted by a possible change of mind in his NFL prospect. This lack of attention does not help the confidence of the boys which negatively influences their developing skills. JB's plan is on a downward spiral and he slowly becomes aware of it once he is able to look past his biggest problem, himself.
With the help of the lovely lady next door, Brenda, played by Lake Bell, JB finds a way to connect to the boys and their culture. Things seem to be looking up for them all (even Brenda and JB find a kinship that did not previously exist) until the boys do not do well for the scouts. Whether it is the pressure or the lack of baseball skills is unknown, but they and JB feel like failures. This along with living in foreign land and extremely different cultural norms causes heartache for the boys and homesickness.
Just when all hope seems lost. JB has lunch with the right person at the right time thanks to his unconventional colleague. Will the boys be able to handle the pressure a second time?
This movie had the perfect amount of heart. You cared for the boys and just wanted them to succeed. JB, played by Jon Hamm, had excellent character development. He starts as a self-involved sports agent and ends the film as a man with an alternative family situation. A definite must see.
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