“Zack Hample vs. The World”

That’s the name of a 95-minute documentary about me that was released on March 29, 2022. Way back in 2017, MLB posted a short version of this film on their YouTube channel, and two years later the full-length version screened at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. (THAT was fun.) The film went through some final tweaks and edits after that, and now it’s finally done! Check out the trailer:

So yeah, this is the real deal and I’m very very extremely excited. When it first came out, it was available to rent/purchase on Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, the Microsoft Xbox Store, Vudu, and Vimeo on Demand. Then it was free on YouTube for a little while, and now if you want to watch it, you’ll need to pay for it on YouTube. You can also order an actual/physical copy of the DVD or Blu-ray if you’re into that sorta thing, and there’s merch too!

One cool thing about this film is the story behind it. On August 5, 2008, I drove down to Philadelphia with my mom to hit up a baseball game. While running all over the place during batting practice (I snagged 12 balls that day, BTW), I was recognized by a guy who’d been reading my blog and happened to have a copy of my first book with him. (Here’s photographic evidence.) This was his first time attempting to catch baseballs, and THERE I was, 100 miles from home. It turned out that he was an aspiring filmmaker and told me that he wanted to make a documentary about me someday. Ummmmm, okayyyy. That’s what I thought because lots of people had suggested collaborating on various projects and rarely delivered, but whatever. This guy’s name was Jeff Siegel, and we ended up keeping in touch. Six years later he started filming me — on his own with no budget — and because of his vision and insane talent, this documentary turned into a work of art. He is truly a master storyteller, and I’m thrilled that we’ve become close friends.

As Jeff put the finishing touches on this project, we decided that we wanted something good to come out of it beyond the story itself. Therefore we are donating a portion of the proceeds to my favorite charity, Pitch In For Baseball & Softball, which provides equipment to underserved children and communities all over the world. In simple terms, this charity helps kids play ball, so I’m all about it, and FYI, when I snagged A-Rod’s 3,000th hit in 2015 and the Yankees offered to donate $150,000 to get that baseball from me, this was the charity that I chose to receive that money. I’ve been working with PIFBS since 2009, so it feels great to keep that momentum going.

And wait! There’s more! Jeff and I watched the whole movie together and shared our thoughts. Check it out:

That’s the longest video I’ve ever posted on my YouTube channel, so grab a cold beverage and get comfy (and cue up the actual movie on another device) before you press “play.”

At this point there won’t be many more updates about “Zack Hample vs. The World,” but just in case you wanna be the first to know about any developments, follow @zackhamplemovie on Instagram along with @1091pictures (the distributor) and @votejs (the filmmaker).