Metacritic reviews

Scene by scene, The Rookie does a better job of capturing the rhythms and rituals of the playing field and the electricity that flows between a team and its fans than well-regarded baseball films like "Field of Dreams" and "The Natural."

Works mostly off Quaid's performance.

Quaid doesn't make the best of the movie's baloney; he presents it to us as a believable truth.

The embodiment of the very message it so modestly conveys -- it's the accomplished little guy we fervently root for.

Eschews cliches and cuts to the truth.

It's not afraid to play cornball when it isn't playing baseball, but The Rookie gets away with it.

It's hard not to get caught up in this improbable but true follow-your-dream tale.

Doesn't break any new ground in the baseball movie playbook. However, it does bring it all back home with the assurance of seasoned pro.

Despite the inherently moving story and the respectable work of director John Lee Hancock and the cast, something remains absent throughout the entire film: a certain sense of verve and personality.

It's a paint-by-numbers job of the worst sort, stuffed with more tired old baseball baloney than Harry Caray and about as dramatic as shagging flies in St. Pete.