MLB Saddened By Death Of 'The Natural' Star Robert Redford

Redford's long line of hit roles includes The Sting, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and All the President’s Men. Yet baseball fans may remember him most fondly for The Natural.

Redford played Hobbs, a baseball prodigy who recovers from a shooting to play for the fictional New York Knights. The movie diverges from the original book to create one of the most memorable moments in any sports film.

Facing fatal health risks and a bribe to throw the game, Hobbs crushes a game-winning home run that shatters the stadium's lights and gives New York the pennant. More than four decades later, it remains an iconic ending.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame noted that Redford received a baseball scholarship from the University of Colorado. The Hall of Fame's museum in Cooperstown has an exhibit for "The Natural" with the uniform Redform wore in the film.

"At one time, I wanted to be a pro ballplayer," Redford said. "So it was very much in my DNA, and I always wanted to make a film about baseball."

Redford's legacy beyond The Natural

Redford received four Academy Award nominations, winning best director for Ordinary People in 1980. He won five Golden Globes for his acting and directing, and a BAFTA in 1970.

Redford later founded the Sundance Film Festival, an independent film event that's given big breaks to several major actors and directors. He also worked tirelessly to protect the environment, leading Barack Obama to bestow him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.

"Bob’s vision of a space and a platform for independent voices launched a movement that, over four decades later, has inspired generations of artists and redefined cinema in the U.S. and around the world," the Sundance Film Festival wrote. "Beyond his enormous contributions to culture at large, we will miss his generosity, clarity of purpose, curiosity, rebellious spirit, and his love for the creative process. We are humbled to be among the stewards of his remarkable legacy, which will continue to guide the Institute in perpetuity."