more of a team sport. . .

[kidcolin]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm going to disagree with the consensus and say BASEBALL.

I know on the surface it seems like basketball is more of a team sport, but here is the reason why it's not:

In basketball it would be possible for one player on the team to completely control the action and score all the baskets. You could still have a basketball game with only one each on a side.

You can't do that with baseball.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes and no. You COULD do that. But any smart basketball team would chew up the team playing an iso offense. Unfortunately, today's NBA doesn't have that many good teams. Still, the better ones (detroit, dallas, SA, miami), were succesful. Only when a player like Jordan enters the equation does the iso work, and even he didn't go deep into the playoffs until they added a bit more of a team element to the mix.

Another good example of this is the '04 Olympics squad. International team-oriented ball absolutley chewed up the world's best players.

With baseball, on the other hand, a pretty mediocre team with just one or two strong bats and a solid pitching staff can do quite well. Take a look at the Red Sox in May vs the Red Sox now.

[Slade19]

Any aerobic activity would suffice. Sprinting 90 feet at a time doesn't quite cut it.

Yes the ping pong comment was an exaggeration, but you certainly got the point.


[ QUOTE ]
You could still have a basketball game with only one each on a side.

You can't do that with baseball.


[/ QUOTE ]

Just because the field requires 9 people to cover, doesn't mean there is more teamwork involved.

That was more absurd of a conclusion than my ping pong one.

[Lazy Meatball]

I think the ping pong comparison is borderline, but if you upgrade it to Olympic level badminton, it would be obvious that it is more of a sport than baseball.

[Slade19]

[ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]

And the worst part is that there are 162 games in a season, so the baseball players get paid a TON more money....


[/ QUOTE ]

Their salary is not determined by how many games they play. I have no clue how you could come to that determination.

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh, cmon now... you have to put even a LITTLE thought into this!

Of all the major american sporting leagues, who makes the most money? Baseball players -- 162 games

Next? Basketball -- 82 games

Finally? Football -- 16 games

You can't pay football players 40 million dollars because there are only 16 games and no one is going to go to football games that require you to pay $1000 a seat just to break even.

But you can certainly pay 40 million dollars for baseball contracts because with more than TEN times the games, you get a proportionately greater amount of revenue from ticket sales.

EDIT: And the baseball roster is smaller than football as well. The bottom line is that baseball players are grossly overpaid if you do a direct comparison to Basketball and Football. If you put a price tag on the injury risks... it becomes even more ridiculous.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

And if I offend any of you baseball players out there, it's only because I speak the truth. Your sport is for people who can't hack it in real sports.

[/ QUOTE ]

Umm, there are many examples of baseball players who played other sports either at the major league or NCAA level. And then there's the issue of Michael Jordan not being able to hack it at baseball. I agree that other sports can demand more athleticism at times, but real athletes often choose to play baseball over other sports for both enjoyment and financial reason.

[/ QUOTE ]

Michael Jordan couldn't hit anything.

I don't deny that hitting a pitch from a professional pitcher is difficult. But that is a skill that doesn't really require a great deal of athleticism to learn. Look around the league at some of the tiny guys with excellent batting averages. How are they more athletic than your average basketball or football player? They aren't...

And if you want to equate certain difficult skillsets to athleticism... then golf wins.

[TheDudeAbides]

[ QUOTE ]



Umm, there are many examples of baseball players who played other sports either at the major league or NCAA level. And then there's the issue of Michael Jordan not being able to hack it at baseball. I agree that other sports can demand more athleticism at times, but real athletes often choose to play baseball over other sports for both enjoyment and financial reason.

[/ QUOTE ]

So I guess by that reasoning John Kruk should be able to play power forward for the Heat?

[Lazy Meatball]

Ok here goes, the reason baseball players get paid what they do is because there is a demand to watch them play, enough demand to pay them to play 160 games. I thought this much was obvious.


And my second point was that their are athletes who can hack it in REAL sports who prefer to play baseball. So you cannot assume that being a baseball player means who aren't good enough to play other sports competitively.

[Aloysius]

[ QUOTE ]

Oh, cmon now... you have to put even a LITTLE thought into this!

Of all the major american sporting leagues, who makes the most money? Baseball players -- 162 games

Next? Basketball -- 82 games


[/ QUOTE ]

Please re-check your facts.

-Al

[Lazy Meatball]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]



Umm, there are many examples of baseball players who played other sports either at the major league or NCAA level. And then there's the issue of Michael Jordan not being able to hack it at baseball. I agree that other sports can demand more athleticism at times, but real athletes often choose to play baseball over other sports for both enjoyment and financial reason.

[/ QUOTE ]

So I guess by that reasoning John Kruk should be able to play power forward for the Heat?

[/ QUOTE ]

While the thought of this is comical, the thought process behind your post is completely absent minded.

[Aloysius]

This thread is horrible.

Also why is this in OOT?

-Al

[Iron Tigran]

Slade, you do know about salary caps in football and basketball, right?