When Tom Cruise showed the world how not to throw a baseball while rocking a Yankees hat

Highly acclaimed Hollywood actor Tom Cruise has done a lot of baseball scenes as part of his successful movies. However, one particular scene from the Steven Spielberg-directed War of the Worlds stands out the most, making it the funniest baseball movie scene of all time.

War of the Worlds is a science fiction film starring Tom Cruise in the role of Ray Ferrier, who works as a crane operator at a dock in Brooklyn, New York. The story follows Ray, who struggles to protect his children and reunite them with their mother after extraterrestrials invade Earth.

Coming back to the scene, which involves Ray Ferrier having father-son time with his son, Robbie Ferrier, portrayed by Justin Chatwin, who encourages him to play ball outside their house.

Interestingly, Robbie donned a Boston Red Sox hat while Ray wore a New York Yankees hat, a perfect comparison to the heated rivalry between the Red Sox and the Yankees to that of father and son.

What stands out even more from the scene is how Tom Cruise pitches the baseball. His pitching stance is comical, to say the least. Moreover, there is no way the ball can acquire the velocity demonstrated in the last throw that smashes the window the way he is throwing it, making for a hilarious scene.

Here's the entire scene from the movie War of the Worlds:

Has Tom Cruise ever done a purely baseball-oriented film?

The answer to that question is yes, and the name of the movie is Jerry Maguire. The sports comedy-drama movie casts Tom Cruise in the lead role of a baseball agent, inspired by experienced sports agent Leigh Steinberg. The veteran has worked with and represented more than 300 athletes during his career as an agent in American sports.

In the movie, Jerry works as a sports agent at Sports Management International (SMI). However, after a life-changing epiphany is triggered by criticism from an injured player's son, he creates a mission statement regarding perceived dishonesty in the sports management profession and his desire to work with fewer clients to produce a stronger, more personal relationship with them.

The movie received wide acclaim, grossing more than $273 million worldwide against its modest $50 million budget.