'30 for 30 Long Gone Summer': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about ESPN's documentary on the iconic 1998 baseball summer

The documentary captures the unforgettable 1998 summer and puts the St Louis Cardinals’ Mark McGwire and the Chicago Cubs’ Sammy Sosa in focus
PUBLISHED MAY 26, 2020
Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa (Getty Images)
Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa (Getty Images)

The sporting action across the world may not have hit full steam yet, but that doesn't mean there is a dearth of content for sports aficionados to sit back home and catch up on. ESPN has continually ensured that their audience has every reason to tune in despite the lockdown. It started off with 'The Last Dance' and then decided to treat it's fans some more in the form of its '30 for 30' series that feature world-class athletes and legends. 

On May 24, it released '30 for 30 Lance' — a two-part docuseries that chronicles the highs and lows of cyclist Lance Armstrong — and is all set to follow it up with a film on Bruce Lee, the legendary martial-artist and Hollywood actor who made waves for bringing in a new meaning to martial-art movies in the early '70s. To just triple the excitement, there is a third documentary, 'Long Gone Summer,' that captures an unforgettable 1998 baseball summer, putting the St Louis Cardinals’ Mark McGwire and the Chicago Cubs’ Sammy Sosa in focus. Here's what we know ahead of the release.

Release Date

'30 for 30 Long Gone Summer' releases June 14, Sunday on ESPN at 9 pm ET.

What's it about?

According to ESPN, the summer of 1998 was a season a die-hard baseball fan wouldn't fever forget. Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa of the St Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs brought the missing spark in fans after the sport saw a rather dreary 1994-95 season. 'Long Gone Summer' presents the best highlights, and the impact it had on the sport. McGwire and Sosa will also be featured in detailed and candid interviews for the first time in two decades.

The series will chart the sluggers’ historic chase of Roger Maris’s iconic record of 61 home runs in a single season. According to ESPN, "the film is a journey back through time that recalls how seismic and emotional the story was."

Director/ Writer

AJ Schnack comes in as the director. The filmmaker is known for 'Speaking is Difficult' (2016). The musical score is composed by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, a St. Louis-area native, and current Chicago resident. 

Trailer

There is no trailer yet for 'Long Gone Summer' yet, but watch this space as we will keep you posted when it trailer hits the web.

If you like this, you'll love these:

'Be Water'

'Lance'

'Rodman'

'Vick' 

'The Last Dance'

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