No games to watch? Let the Globe sports staff recommend some sports movies and books

With sports being postponed pretty much across the board, fans are looking for ways to fill the void of not having live games to watch.

The Globe invited its sports department, including reporters, columnists, multiplatform editors, and web producers, to share suggestions for movies, books, and other media readers may want to consider as they look for content to consume.

Here are some recommendations:

Movies

“Bull Durham” — It’s among the most quotable movies of all time, let alone sports movies. “Don’t think, Meat, it will only hurt the ballclub” ... “Candlesticks always make a nice gift” ... “Strikeouts are boring. Besides that, they’re fascist.” – Chad Finn

“A League of Their Own” — At a time of war, when our nation needed new ways to come together, women’s baseball helped fill the void. Not a bad sentiment to channel at the moment. – Tara Sullivan

“Slap Shot” — An eminently quotable, rollicking trip through 1970s minor-league hockey, with Paul Newman at his best. – Matt Porter

“Raging Bull” — The punishing story of middleweight fighter Jake LaMotta was nominated for eight Oscars and won two: Robert De Niro (who gained an incredible 60 pounds to play an aged and out-of-control LaMotta) as best actor and one for film editing. – Jim Hoban

“Free Solo” — Story of a young man’s attempt to climb Half Dome in Yosemite by his fingertips (no ropes). Takes your breath away. And the views are stunning, too. – Barbara Matson

“The Damned United” — It’s a movie that charts the highs and lows of one of the best and most hilariously egotistical coaches in English soccer history, Brian Clough. – Hayden Bird

“Hoop Dreams” — A groundbreaking documentary that premiered in 1994, this gripping story of two inner-city boys chasing their NBA ambitions remains relevant. – Bob Hohler

“Sandlot” and “Rudy” — Hopeful, family-friendly movies when kids are spending anxious days at home represent a nice salve. – Alex Speier

“Miracle” — Kurt Russell nails it as Herb Brooks, while the filmmakers wisely chose to go with hockey players who could act, rather than try to teach actors to play hockey, in this retelling of 1980′s “Miracle on Ice.” Others: “Caddyshack," “The Fighter.” – Andrew Mahoney

“Breaking Away” — A coming-of-age story set in a small town in Indiana, where a teenager is bitten by the Italian cycling bug. – Michael Silverman

“Hoosiers” – Hands-down the best sports movie ever made. With no March Madness and no NBA, this will give basketball junkies a fix. – Michael Vega

Books

“The MVP Machine,” by Ben Lindbergh and Travis Sawchik — One of the most insightful books imaginable about the current state of baseball. “Swing Kings” by Jared Diamond, out this month, is likewise illuminating. (There’s another book called “Homegrown” by a certain Globe writer …) – Alex Speier

“String Theory: David Foster Wallace on Tennis” — A collection of essays that could only have been written by Wallace, an accomplished tennis player. – Michael Silverman

“Moneyball” by Michael Lewis – I learned about the power of analytics for the first time – Lewis took apart the Oakland A’s as they tried to use numbers to give their small-budget team an advantage against the big dogs – and a behind-the-scenes look at someone else’s world is always fun to read.

“Friday Night Lights,” by H.G. Bissinger — This story of a Texas high school football team shows exactly why we love (and need) sports. Plus there’s a movie and TV show (see below)! – Jenna Ciccotelli

“Inverting the Pyramid,” by Jonathan Wilson — An intricate exploration of the history of soccer tactics and the fascinating characters who pushed the game forward. – Hayden Bird

“Seabiscuit: An American Legend," by Laura Hillenbrand — Meticulously reported, beautifully written, utterly captivating book that drew me in despite my relative lack of interest or understanding of the horse racing industry. Hillenbrand completely draws you into the tale of a most amazing horse. – Tara Sullivan

“Among the Thugs," by Bill Buford — This is a gifted writer’s mesmerizing dispatch from the front lines of British soccer hooliganism, a world like no other. – Bob Hohler

“Prophet of the Sandlots,” by Mark Winegardner — You can’t go wrong with the classics: “The Boys of Summer,” “Ball Four,” anything written by Pat Jordan. But Winegardner’s book about an accomplished scout with the Phillies who is losing his relevance is an unheralded prospect that ought to be regarded as a superstar. – Chad Finn

“Unfinished Business: On and Off the Court with the 1990-91 Boston Celtics,” by Jack McCallum — This is a must for a Bird-era Celtics fan, and I suspect for others as well, as it looks at a team in transition, supplementing an aging Hall of Fame frontcourt with a young backcourt. Others: “A Season on the Brink” and “A Civil War,” both by John Feinstein; “Playing for Knight” by Steve Alford. – Andrew Mahoney

“Into Thin Air,” by Jon Krakauer — Terrifying and fascinating look at a small corner of sport: climbing Mt. Everest. – Barbara Matson

Other media (television shows, podcasts, etc.)

“Friday Night Lights” — A small Texas town, a team with big dreams, and a coach and his wife who are the best married couple ever portrayed on television. Fantastic family drama that just happens to include football. – Tara Sullivan

“Puck Soup” — A podcast for diehard hockey fans. – Matt Porter

“Dare to Dream” — The US women’s soccer team has made a global splash. How did this group get such acclaim when women before them were ignored? – Barbara Matson

“When We Were Kings” — It’s an Oscar-winning documentary about Muhammad Ali’s 1974 heavyweight fight against George Foreman that became known as “Rumble in the Jungle.” – Hayden Bird

“Gladiator” — The Globe’s look at the life of former Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez. – Bob Hohler

“MLB Network Presents” — The MLB Network’s docs don’t get the buzz of the “30 for 30s,” but they’re just as good, and many will be re-running in the coming weeks. The docs on Dave Parker and Mark Fidrych are especially compelling. – Chad Finn

“30 for 30” — I love ESPN’s series of documentaries, especially “Catholics vs. Convicts,” “Pony Excess,” “The Two Bills,” and “Small Potatoes,” to name a few. – Andrew Mahoney

“Two Writers Slinging Yang" podcast — Jeff Pearlman chats with sports media people of all types on their jobs and their experiences. – Barbara Matson

Also recommended: “The Longest Yard,” “Hard Knocks,” “HBO’s Real Sports,” the first season of “Brockmire,” “Arli$$,” and, if card games qualify, “The World Series of Poker.”