A sports agent stages an unconventional recruitment strategy to get talented Indian cricket players to play Major League Baseball.
In 2008, J. B. Bernstein is a sports agent who finds his business being seriously outplayed by his deep-pocketed competitors. Inspired by reality shows and Indian cricket games on TV, Bernstein gets the bold idea of finding cricket players in India and training them to become pro baseball players in America. After a long search, Bernstein finds two talented but non-cricket-playing youths, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel and takes them to Los Angeles where they find mastering a new sport in a foreign land a daunting challenge. As these boys struggle amid an alien culture, Bernstein must find a way to make their dream come true, during which he finds a deeper humanity to his work with unexpected and growing friendships.—Kenneth Chisholm ([email protected])
The company is in serious financial straits, and they lose the big client they've been grooming. In a fit of inspiration, J.B. believes they can go to India, find a cricket bowler, and teach him to be a baseball pitcher. In order to pay for the scheme, he convinces wealthy businessman Chang (Tzi Ma) to create a reality show titled "Million Dollar Arm" to help with his quest for fresh talent. Upon arriving in India, he is quickly befriended by Amit (Pitobash), an overly-eager man who loves baseball and will do anything he can to help. J.B. also brings in retired scout Ray (Alan Arkin) to help him weed through the thousands of candidates who try to whip a baseball over 90 mph. Although at first the going is rough, they eventually find a pair of eager and promising prospects: Dinesh (Madhur Mittal) and Rinku (Suraj Sharma). The duo travel back to the States with J.B. where they are then tutored by Tom House (Bill Paxton), a USC baseball coach whose approach to the game is as much mental as physical. The two young men are finally given a highly publicized tryout in front of scouts from numerous pro teams, as well as media from around the world. Meanwhile, the fiercely single J.B., whose personal life involves dating a string of models, begins to strike up a serious romance with his tenant Brenda (Lake Bell), a doctor who rents the guest house on his beautiful L.A. estate..
American sports agent J.B. Bernstein (Jon Hamm) and his partner Ash (Aasif Mandvi) are struggling to acquire new talent. They learn of an Asian businessman, Chang, looking to invest in Asian-based athletes. In a moment of inspiration while watching Britain's Got Talent and a cricket match, Bernstein comes up with an idea to tap into the Indian cricket market, through a contest called Million Dollar Arm, which will identify the best Cricket bowlers and bring them to the US for a chance to get a major League baseball contract. They pitch the idea to Chang (who is their investor), who buys it and gives them a year to deliver results.
Ash is not convinced that 2 cricketers from India can be taught to pitch & made ready for try-outs in 1 year. So, they hire Tom House who has a reputation for being an unorthodox baseball coach. J.B convinces Tom to take up the challenge.JB travels to India & sets up office in Mumbai via his local liaison Vivek. Vivek helps JB navigate the "Indian way of doing things" & helps him get his marketing extravaganza on track. Vivek helps arrange the venues, the merchandise, the fliers, & even get the equipment released from customers. The talent search has a prize of $100,000 with a chance to win 1 MM $. During his work in Mumbai JB meets Amit Rohan, who is a fanatic baseball fan & wants to be a coach in the US. JB hires him as Amit agrees to work for him for free. Ash arranges for a baseball scout (Ray) to meet JB in India to help look for the talent.
The show finally gets on the road with the first tryouts in Nasik. The whole day no-one can pitch more than 45 mph, & JB gets the Delhi Belly. Bernstein goes on a week's long trip throughout India, during which he finds two young suitable candidates, and brings them back for training in the US, along with a prospective Indian coach Amit Rohan (Pitobash Tripathy). The young players are Rinku Singh (Suraj Sharma) & Dinesh Patel (Madhur Mittal). JB meets Dinesh in Lucknow where he is the son of a rickshaw puller & dreams of making it big in the world.
Rinku was also scouted in Lucknow where he was training to be a track & field athlete but went to JB's tryout because his coach asked him to. Both Rinku & Dinesh pitch over 80 mph. all over India about 20 people were selected & brought to Mumbai for the finals, where they trained with Ray for a week, while being put up at a local college. During this time JB offers Amit the job as a translator in the US & asks him to come with him. At the finals Rinku beats Dinesh to emerge as the winner of the $100,000, but both are selected to travel to the US to train & try-outs for pro league.Vivek takes JB to Rinku & Dinesh's houses to let him see first-hand the background that these kids come from & the responsibility JB is taking on his shoulders.
The 4 of them head to the US, where JB finds that his neighbor Brenda (who was using JB's washing machine while he was away in India) & a potential love interest is dating another guy. JB as to bring Dinesh, Rinku & Amit home as they are kicked out of their hotel for playing with the fire alarm systems.JB delivers Dinesh & Rinku to Tom House for their baseball training & their first session goes very badly. Tom doesn't think the boys can be ready for pro try-outs in 6 months. Then JB & Ash run out of money but get a call from a former potential client (Popo) who is not happy with his new agency. This makes JB divert his attention to bagging this potential client. Meanwhile the training is not having the desired results.
JB decides to take all to Popo's party where he wants to negotiate a new deal with Popo, but Amit, Dinesh & Rinku get drunk, throw up and interrupt JB's conversation with Popo, who goes ahead & signs the deal with his current agency. JB is angry & screams at the boys, but Brenda counsels him to be patient with them & to give them more attention. She also tells him that she is single again as she broke up with her boyfriend.
JB starts spending more time with the boys, attends their training & gradually they start bonding over non-work-related stuff as well. JB sleeps with Brenda & the guys support him in his relationship. The boys start getting better, speed improves to 90 mph + and accuracy improves.But then Chang comes over for a status update & presses JB to include Dinesh & Rinku for the Nov tryouts. Tom resists as the Nov tryouts are the most advertised in US baseball calendar & means huge pressure for Dinesh & Rinku, & totally out of their comfort zone. But JB has no option but to agree to Chang.
As Tom feared, the boys freeze on the big stage and their speed and accuracy goes out of the window. It is a disaster. But Chang walks up to JB & congratulates him. He even extends his contract with JB for 3 more years. He knows that the marketing potential of the set-up is huge, & he believes that even though Dinesh & Rinku might not be the right picks, but the future picks will be a lot better. JB has his deal, but the boys are devastated at letting JB down.JB decides to give them another shot, after a pep talk with Brenda. Chang refuses to support this & even threatens to pull out of the deal, but JB decides to proceed regardless. But now, no scout in US is willing to take his calls or meet him. Thats when Ray turns up again & gets JB a tryout meeting with the head scout of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Chang comes to witness the tryouts. They pitch much better and are offered a contract by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
JB & Brenda marry & have a family of their own. Chang agrees to fund the Million Dollar Arm for 3 more years.
