CALVIN MARSHALL (Alex Frost) is a terrible baseball player. Yet in an act of warped dedication, he refuses to acknowledge the fact that grounders violently ricochet off his glove, that he flinches at the sight of pitches, and that his throwing arm is as weak as a Little Leaguer with a broken limb. A perky overachiever, Marshall is the Max Fischer of the junior college baseball circuit, a player composed solely of enthusiasm with zero discernable skill to show for it.

As a film, Calvin Marshall is the cinematic equivalent of its title character. The low-budget production is pristine, and its overcast backdrop will look familiar to most Oregonians (it was filmed in both Ashland and Medford). The cast is equally as impressive, with the wide-eyed Frost, Steve Zahn as his troubled coach, and Michelle Lombardo as the out-of-his-league love interest.

While Calvin Marshall's script can't quite match its ambitious production values, its cast, or its robust soundtrack of Portland bands, the film is a determined effort that's as delightful to watch as the player himself.