Right Off the Bat (1915)

Young Mike Donlin devotes himself to developing his baseball skills and wooing his rich Winsted, Connecticut neighbor, Viola Bradley. Mike is accepted by the Bradley family when he saves Viola from drowning, but as an adult, his troubled financial situation, which forces him to work as a mechanic in the Bradley factory and play bush league ball, compromises his marital chances. Proving himself indispensable to the Winsted baseball club, Mike propels the team into a heated pennant race that culminates in the "big game." Mike is approached by Jake Dunning, a gambler, to throw the game but refuses and is kidnapped. Without their star player, Winsted quickly falls behind and, as Viola has secretly invited a New York Giants scout to the game, disaster lurks. Viola, however, rescues Mike in time for him to hit the winning home run, and the scout eagerly signs him to the majors, now Viola and Mike's marriage plans are clinched.