Set against the background of the depression-ridden Midwest in 1939, this nostalgic comedy follows Billy Dee Williams, James Earl Jones and Richard Pryor in the adventures of a lively and diverse group of black baseball players who have defected from the old Negro National League. Barred because of color from competing against their white counterparts in the major leagues and unhappy with the way the National Negro League is being operated, the All-Stars turn to barnstorming -- travelling from town-to-town in rickety cars and buses, lodging in flea-bag hotels and, often, eating on the run, all for the love of the game.