bat Men

February 19, 2001

They were as dramatic a duo as baseball has seen, which is why it was only a matter of time before the story of Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris got the Hollywood treatment. Here's a first look at 61*, director Billy Crystal's paean to the Yankees sluggers and their pursuit of Babe Ruth's home run record. Wearing Mantle's number 7 is Thomas Jane (Deep Blue Sea), who came to the project with limited baseball skills and had to be taught to switch-hit by former big leaguer Reggie Smith. Maris is played by Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan), a dead ringer for the press-shy slugger. The movie debuts on HBO on April 28.