So Major League Baseball Players Are The Best Athletes?

[David Sklansky]

It seems that under certain definitions, the answer is undeniable. In spite of the fact that almost none could compete in the decathalon or the old Superstars shows.

It has often been stated that the hardest thing in sports is hitting a 95mph pitch. But even aside from that I want to point out that three threads I started here add fuel to the argument.

1. Most people here think an NBA team could not beat a high school baseball team but they could beat a high school football team.

2. Most people here think mere blazing speed can overcome average athleticism if you want to play in the NFL. Clearly not enough for baseball.

3. Most people think that a mere foot in extra height can overcome average athleticism if you want to play in the NBA. Clearly almost irrelevant for baseball

I suppose I could also mention that even 15 Ohio State baseball players would have no chance against the Yankees (although that is a bit of unfair because of the importance of the pitchers).

Anyway the point is that unlike the other sports there is no one trait that encompasses enough of the game that inhuman ability in it is a through ticket to a baseball career. If you could train an orangutan to play football or basketball, he starts. But he doesn't even sit on the bench as a baseball player.

[VanVeen]

are you asking everyone to define athleticism such that baseball players are in more (or less) possession of it than other athletes? odd exercise! i hope everyone can do this!

no fluent speaker of the english language wouldn't include both speed and height as attributes relevant to 'athleticism' and no reasonably educated person would argue that lacking specialised muscle and visual training is indicative of a paucity of innate ability for some very obvious reasons.

as to your 'point' i must disagree: super natural eye-hand coordination and super quick reflexes would enable a person in possession of average musculature, flexibility, etc. to become exceptionally successful on the baseball field. how important eye hand coordination is to one's overall 'athleticism coefficient' is up for debate.

[tomdemaine]

Given the abiltity to throw a 300MPH fast ball a 350lb morbidly obese slob or a 95 year old on his death bed guy would still start for any MLB team no?

[VanVeen]

tom, would you have sex with a dude if he could throw a 300mph fastball? 400mph? how many miles per hour would a guy have to throw a fastball before you'd fellate him assuming he was of average attractiveness. how does your answer change if the guy is sklansky? diablo? please provide some reasoning.

[pete fabrizio]

[ QUOTE ]
It seems that under certain definitions, the answer is undeniable. In spite of the fact that almost none could compete in the decathalon or the old Superstars shows.

It has often been stated that the hardest thing in sports is hitting a 95mph pitch. But even aside from that I want to point out that three threads I started here add fuel to the argument.

1. Most people here think an NBA team could not beat a high school baseball team but they could beat a high school football team.

2. Most people here think mere blazing speed can overcome average athleticism if you want to play in the NFL. Clearly not enough for baseball.

3. Most people think that a mere foot in extra height can overcome average athleticism if you want to play in the NBA. Clearly almost irrelevant for baseball

I suppose I could also mention that even 15 Ohio State baseball players would have no chance against the Yankees (although that is a bit of unfair because of the importance of the pitchers).

Anyway the point is that unlike the other sports there is no one trait that encompasses enough of the game that inhuman ability in it is a through ticket to a baseball career. If you could train an orangutan to play football or basketball, he starts. But he doesn't even sit on the bench as a baseball player.

[/ QUOTE ]

So you're saying that because the skills needed to excel in baseball are the least correlated with raw athletic ability, that it makes baseball players the best athletes? Exactly what bizarre definitions are you using that make this "undeniable"?

[southerndog]

Baseball's about hand eye coordination. Picture a baseball player trying golf, tennis, basketball, football.. Its not that hard to imagine..

Imagine a basketball player trying golf or baseball... Not very good, right?

When I was about 11 I axed my friend what sport was easiest to make it in.. He said "Football, you gotta be a monster, Basketball, you gotta be real tall, and hockey you gotta be a madman... Baseball players are just regular guys.."

Anyway, its kinda like high school wrestling.. Which weight division is the toughest to win? Probably the one which would have most boys of that age falling in that weight class.. most people get an opportunity to play baseball, and it doesn't really disriminate on size.. Neither does, golf, but not everyone's interested in it, and not everyone can afford it.

[Kristian]

No. Chess players are the best athletes.

[dankhank]

it depends on how you define athleticism. a lot of people would say that someone who is bigger and/or faster, is the superior athlete to someone with learned sports skills such as a baseball player or golfer.

it is not a stretch to say albert pujols is a greater athlete than terrell owens, but it is really just comparing apples to oranges.

personally i don't find it a greater athletic feat for pujols to play baseball all his life and slowly acquire the transcendent skill he has, than it is for the current freshman left tackle at mississippi to hardly play football all his life, but immediately become a dominant presence. what pujols did is more impressive, but it is not a greater display of athleticism.

to me the most amazing thing about great athletes is the calm and confidence they have on the field. while some of their less talented contemporaries are grinding 24/7, playing completely focused, a world class athlete in many cases is contributing more, but expending less. manny ramirez and barry sanders come to mind here. sklansky's argument, while tough to refute directly, seems to somehow ignore this effortlessness, which to me is usually the calling card of a great athlete.

[Divad Yksnal]

[Shandrax]

I don't see any reason to believe that mastering a difficult sport makes you a better athlete overall.

You either can hit/throw a 90mph fastball or you can not. Since this is the main quality you need for baseball, it's just natural selection in one very specific area.

Decathlon is the discipline that should crown the king of athletes.

Overall this is all about what is more important, to be the best all-arounder of the best specialist in something. Using an analogy from poker, I would say that the better all-arounder can pick better games on average than the specialist. On the other hand if I was a passenger in an air-plane, I'd prefer the pilot to be a specialist instead of combining the best overall mix of bus-driving, sailing, car-driving, horse-riding and plane-flying.