'Bad News Bears' star running for Congress

David Pollock — who played nerdy Rudi Stein in the 1976 film “The Bad News Bears” — is running for Congress and making his child stardom a part of his campaign.

“It’s been a while since I played Rudi Stein in ‘The Bad News Bears,’ but I still know a thing or two about the underdog,” Pollock says in a new ad that’s set, like the famous flick, on a baseball field. In the ad, Pollock, wearing glasses (real ones, not a prop) and a yellow baseball uniform, hits a home run for his team, the 99 percent.

“The reason I chose that as the analogy is the issue of the level playing field,” Pollock told POLITICO. “You have two teams, and obviously in partisan politics you have two teams battling it out. But the bigger analogy … is the imbalance of power between corporate interests and ordinary Americans. Something has really gotten out of whack, and we need to restore balance to the system.”

Pollock is running as a Democrat in California’s new 26th Congressional District. Retiring Republican Rep. Elton Gallegly currently represents the area, but the seat may be up for grabs, thanks to redistricting.

“I am the practical progressive in the race, and I am running against institutional favorites. In that sense, I am the underdog,” Pollock said, channeling Rudi Stein.

He may not be favored to win, but Pollock’s former Little League teammates still have his back.

“Two of the other cast members are in the commercial with me,” Pollock said, referring to actors Erin Blunt and Brett Marx.

Now 50, Pollock was 14 when “The Bad News Bears” was released and quit acting three years later. “I hung it up when I was 17 because I realized it wouldn’t be so much fun anymore if I had to rely on it for a living,” he said. Since then, Pollock has worked in the airline industry, earned an M.B.A. and has been elected to his local school board and City Council. He announced his congressional run in August.

And though he’s playing up his role in “The Bad News Bears” to promote the campaign, Pollock is quick to point out that’s not why he should win.

“I don’t want anyone to get the idea that because I was a child star, I’m qualified to be in Congress,” he said.