Review   Mr. 3000   **1/2   Rated: PG-13 for sexual content and language   Cast: Bernie Mac, Angela Bassett, Evan Jones, Amaury Nalasco, Paul Sorvino   Director: Charles Stone III   Family call: There are quite a few swear-word tirades, as well as a near sex scene.   Running time: 102 minutes   Opens Friday at: Park Place, El Con, Century Park, Foothills, DeAnza, Cinemark   Bernie Mac stepping up to the plate again Funnyman Bernie Mac takes to the baseball diamond for "Mr. 3000," which opens Friday. Here is a look at Mac's previous cinematic home runs, bloop singles and groundouts.   Home runs: "Bad Santa" (2003), "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), "Friday" (1995)   Scouting report: Mac has yet to headline a film but has excelled so far in bit roles in funny comedies. His zany, woman-hungry role as a preacher in "Friday" is his best yet, and he played a reliable straight-man foil for Billy Bob Thornton in "Bad Santa." He was part of an impressive ensemble in the heist remake, "Ocean's Eleven."   Bloop singles: "Get on the Bus" (1996), "Booty Call" (1997)   Scouting report: Mac was one of the best things going in the sex farce "Booty Call," in which he played the imposing Judge Peabody. He seemed unsure of himself in the above-average Spike Lee flick about a trip to the Million Man March, "Get on the Bus."   Groundouts: "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" (2003), "Head of State" (2003), "Life" (1999), "The Players Club" (1998)   Scouting report: "Bad Santa" aside, it was a rough 2003 for Mac, who starred in two of the most notable movie disasters of that year. Bill Murray left a tough act to follow for the "Charlie's Angels" role of Bosley, and his part as Dollar Bill was unremarkable in the Ice Cube-directed strip-club folly, "The Players Club."

It's a stretch to accept a 47-year-old retiree returning to a major-league lineup, but in a world in which Tony Danza gets his own talk show, just about anything is possible. "Mr. 3000" hits-and-runs with that premise, featuring me-first Milwaukee Brewer Stan Ross, who walks away from baseball in 1995 the day he collects his 3,000th hit, a figure he is sure will lock up a spot in the Hall of Fame. In an interview, Stan boasts of his skill and cusses out a huddle of reporters. Even Barry Bonds would shake his head at the display. Flash-forward to 2004, and Stan, played with swagger by Bernie Mac in his first toplining role, presides over a line of "Mr. 3000" businesses, including a sports bar, a hair salon and pet shop. Despite having achieved the hit milestone, voters have stonewalled Stan from the hall for the past four years. Stan's fifth bid is torpedoed when a statistician discovers that he was incorrectly credited with three hits. Now Stan is just Mr. 2,997. Stan has his agent make a call in midseason, and the Brewers - fumbling in fifth place and with low attendance - agree to let Stan back on the team. Episodical scenes establish the rest of the story, in which Stan struggles with his hitting and overpowering ego, which alienates him from teammates. There's also an ESPN reporter, Mo (Angela Bassett), who used to have a hot and heavy thing with Stan, before she was brushed aside for groupies. Now she's bitter and combative, but Stan wants her back. Director Charles Stone III is taking a stab at resurrecting the baseball comedy, a proud genre that dates back to "Damn Yankees" and up through "The Bad News Bears," "Major League," "Bull Durham" and "A League of Their Own." Those are seen as the best of the lot, and even the worst baseball comedies aren't that bad. Baseball has long provided ample ground for easy giggles, but Stone can't get much movement on his slider. Much of the humor repetitively jabs at Stan's inability to hit. He goes hitless in his first several games, and we not only see almost every pathetic at-bat, we suffer through the replays on "SportsCenter" and "The Best Damn Sports Show, Period," accompanied with snide commentary from the usual roundup of talking heads. We're supposed to wince while Stan flails at curves and dumbfoundedly stares at fast balls he can barely glimpse. Arizona Diamondbacks fans will be numb to those scenes. The film is likable enough for a matinee look, but wastes so many comedic opportunities it starts to simulate the grind of a 162-game season. What about hurling some chin music at modern players' affinity for steroids and growth enhancers? Maybe a little clubhouse humor? Why no goofy "be the ball" philosophy, or jabs at ballplayers' notorious superstitions? "Mr. 3000" hits the low point of its slump at the end, when Stone tries to force a happy sendoff with a ludicrous strategic mishap onfield that wouldn't pass in high school. It's a disappointing finish for a film that smacks a single - a single that could have been stretched to extra bases if it only wanted to run a little harder. Review Mr. 3000

 

**1/2 Rated: PG-13 for sexual content and language Cast: Bernie Mac, Angela Bassett, Evan Jones, Amaury Nalasco, Paul Sorvino Director: Charles Stone III Family call: There are quite a few swear-word tirades, as well as a near sex scene. Running time: 102 minutes Opens Friday at: Park Place, El Con, Century Park, Foothills, DeAnza, Cinemark Bernie Mac stepping up to the plate again Funnyman Bernie Mac takes to the baseball diamond for "Mr. 3000," which opens Friday. Here is a look at Mac's previous cinematic home runs, bloop singles and groundouts. Home runs: "Bad Santa" (2003), "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), "Friday" (1995) Scouting report: Mac has yet to headline a film but has excelled so far in bit roles in funny comedies. His zany, woman-hungry role as a preacher in "Friday" is his best yet, and he played a reliable straight-man foil for Billy Bob Thornton in "Bad Santa." He was part of an impressive ensemble in the heist remake, "Ocean's Eleven." Bloop singles: "Get on the Bus" (1996), "Booty Call" (1997) Scouting report: Mac was one of the best things going in the sex farce "Booty Call," in which he played the imposing Judge Peabody. He seemed unsure of himself in the above-average Spike Lee flick about a trip to the Million Man March, "Get on the Bus." Groundouts: "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" (2003), "Head of State" (2003), "Life" (1999), "The Players Club" (1998) Scouting report: "Bad Santa" aside, it was a rough 2003 for Mac, who starred in two of the most notable movie disasters of that year. Bill Murray left a tough act to follow for the "Charlie's Angels" role of Bosley, and his part as Dollar Bill was unremarkable in the Ice Cube-directed strip-club folly, "The Players Club."