Thoughts?
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He's a tremendous athlete. I'm looking forward to see what kind of baseball skills he has.
He is a likeable guy who you really don't have to worry about making poor decisions off the field. He gives us all enough religion in his speeches that we (collectively as a nation) don't have to go to Sunday school. I like the guy and I hope he does well. JMO.
This may be an interesting thread.
My view -- respect for the effort, and apparent love for the game ...
But no chance as an OF/Hitter after 10 years out of the game and nothing past high school. It's good he made some $ in football and broadcasting, gives him a chance to pursue something many good athletes in mid/late 20's would like to try. But most have to go find real work by then with steady pay.
I do think some Minor League team signs him as a promotion to draw interest and fans. And maybe a reality TV show.
Wasting his time. Might want to try professional rassling.
Now Jerry's going to have to fill in some of those blanks.
Good luck to him, but it will end like Michael Jordan. at least some minor league or indy Team will get some Publicity.
I don't have a problem with what Tim Tebow is doing. If he hit above .200 in short season A ball or rookie ball, I would be impressed. I don't think that is possible but let the young man try and prove people wrong if he can get the opportunity.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/...s-los-angeles-angels
https://www.facebook.com/kenro...sts/1093299124069151
It's not like he's never played before... I thought when he first committed to UF, he could be a 2-sport player... He might have been one of the best baseball players on campus all 4-years he was there - definitely is an ELITE athlete... It will be interesting to see how fast game skills come back to him (if at all?) to see where he's at...
As a person, I really like and respect Tebow from what I know about him from a very long distance. I just can't see how this can end well. It is very hard for me to believe that anyone could take 11 years away from the game of baseball and step back in and be succussful. Possibly if he was a LHP that could throw low to mid 90's, but as a hitter, I doubt it. I know the guy is tremendously athletic. I could see him having success in basketball or some other sport that require mainly athleticism, but a sport like baseball that is a trained skill over thousand and thousands of reps, I really don't believe he stands a chance. I'm all for him going for it and have nothing against him trying. I just hate to see him give all the naysayers out there more ammo to pile on him about. The guy is obviously a high moral and character person and one most dad's would love to see their daughter bring home, but that isn't gonna help him one bit in batting practice. It will be interesting to follow.
He's 'projectable' 
Arm good enough to pitch? Hard throwing lefty will always get a look.
Frankly, I'm not sure his past history in baseball is even relevant anymore. As some have pointed out, he has not played in close to 10 years. More importantly, his body has changed a LOT since he was 18. Over the years he has bulked himself up into a fullback/tight-end style body. Certainly not a pitcher's body. Probably one of the reasons he never was a particularly accurate passer. There is tons of info on the web regarding his workouts. For the most part, they are not baseball workouts. To go back to baseball now will require him to totally change his mentality. I don't see that happening. If he's so desperate to play professional sports, he'd have a better shot at making the NFL as a fullback or tight end. But, he's too proud/delusional to do that. Now baseball's his plan B? I don't see it. Time to move on. No one plays any sport forever. Our kids moved on. Time for him to do the same.
Hey may be a great athlete, but he isn't as great an athlete as Michael Jordan was. No chance as a position player. When I heard he was going to try to play baseball, I thought that he may have a shot as a LHP, but then I heard it was as an OF...
I wish him well. But that's a tall order. I agree someone may just sign him for the fanfare. But realistically his odds are very slim of being capable to compete at a level that would justify it outside of a publicity stunt.
He knows the odds are stacked against him.
He's going for it anyway. Maybe he enjoys the experience of pursuing apparently unreachable goals. Maybe his desire to succeed is so intense that the odds don't matter. Maybe he knows himself well enough that he won't respect himself fully if he quits before a goal is proven to be truly impossible. Maybe he senses an obligation to find the best expression of his abilities. Maybe he just thinks it would be a blast to try.
Whatever his motivation, it matters more to him than his fear of public failure or the likelihood that millions of people with a fraction of his talent and character will mock him if he fails.
I respect that.
I don't see an article link to the original post so ...
https://www.washingtonpost.com...omeback-in-baseball/
The word "had" comes up frequently when describing his skills. He's inviting MLB teams to a workout. He shou,d be personally begging any to show. If he's signed by a MLB organization check to see if their short season team has low attendance. Otherwise, I expect him to be advised to sign with an Indy team. A team in the Bible Belt with poor attendance would do well to sign him.
I am with swampboy on this. He obviously doesn't care what people think or he wouldn't keep taking risks. I definitely would not call it an act of desperation. He doesn't need baseball or any other sport. He just wants to give it a shot. More power to him.
I can only assume someone is paying him to see this happen, maybe to turn it into something like a reality show.
I guess it'll sell some tickets on some Rookie League team. If everything went unbelievably well, after 5 years in the minors he might make it to MLB -- at the age of 33-34. Good luck with that.
If he's serious about playing a big time sport, he should suit up as a tight end and head to an NFL camp. But he has already let this year pass him by on that score, so I take it this is either an attempt to stay viable as a TV personality (kind of like how Sarah Palin has to say something once in a while to keep getting paid to show up at various places), or an indication that he's not in touch with reality.
Swamp, I totally agree with your post. There is footage of his swing on twitter. I have to say it looks very good. Now, how it will translate to live pitching, I don't know. I still am very skeptical of the result, not the effort.
Batting Stance Guy has a nice swing too. ;-)
I would put money on Tebow getting picked up. Baseball is a business. He will increase the bottom line of any organization.
Julian Edelmann, Patriots WR recently worked out with the Red Sox. He drove the ball well. He hit several into the screen. He showed great hands and arm at short. All he proved is he's an excellent athlete who used to play baseball. It doesn't mean he can play MLB. At least not now starting in his late twenties. I see Tebow the same way. Tebow is either bored or working an angle.
The doubting Thomas's are queuing up on this one. Everybody's got an angle on this or that, and conspiracies are running rampant. Remember, Tebow is a very different athlete than anybody else. Anybody remember Bo Jackson? I'm not saying he is is the next Bo Jackson, but Bo surprised a few baseball people along the way. Before you bury Tebow, let's see what baseball skills he can bring to the table. He may surprise a few of us.
I can assure everyone that this is not a publicity stunt. There are former MLB players that think he has a good chance of making it to the Big Leagues. We have been contacted and are planning to see what he has.
As difficult as it may seem, almost impossible, Tebow is a very rare athlete and person. What a great story if this really happens. It would be outstanding for the game of baseball in so many ways.
Right or wrong, he believes he can make it to the Big Leagues. Athletes believe that they will succeed, otherwise, they would not have had the success that they had, whatever it was.
fenwaysouth posted:The doubting Thomas's are queuing up on this one. Everybody's got an angle on this or that, and conspiracies are running rampant. Remember, Tebow is a very different athlete than anybody else. Anybody remember Bo Jackson? I'm not saying he is is the next Bo Jackson, but Bo surprised a few baseball people along the way. Before you bury Tebow, let's see what baseball skills he can bring to the table. He may surprise a few of us.
You have a good point, but I also agree, let's not compare Tebow to Bo Jackson! That's blasphemy. Michael Jordan couldn't do it, and I wouldn't compare Tim Tebow in any way shape or form to him. Just don't think it'll happen. There have been many instances where players have done football to baseball, or baseball to football, and not many have been successful. Most of the football to baseball guys didn't make it out of A Ball. I just think it is going to be too difficult.
This is not a slight on Tebow, but each year we see lots of great players not make it. I know a lot of people would love to see it happen, but minus a miracle, it's not...
Texas1836 posted:Right or wrong, he believes he can make it to the Big Leagues. Athletes believe that they will succeed, otherwise, they would not have had the success that they had, whatever it was.
You're right - it's an essential part of the successful athlete's makeup, at any level. I was talking to my son the other day about his HS team's chances next spring. As defending league champ they lost 7 starters to graduation, while the #2 team returns 6 starters, including 4 D1 commits. My son is pretty darn confident they'll win nonetheless.
(that said, I'm predicting a roster spot on the Sugarland Skeeters for Mr. Tebow.)
He gives us all enough religion in his speeches that we (collectively as a nation) don't have to go to Sunday school.
Yes you do. Lol.
I don't think an organization will sign him for attendance as I believe gate and concession money goes to the individual minor league team, not the parent organization. Somebody correct me if I am wrong. This, however, would be a great incentive for a independent team to sign him since the money from increased attendance would go straight to the decision makers.
The swings I saw on twitter don't translate to the higher levels of pro ball in my opinion. He turns like a mad man and is clearly an elite athlete but I don't think the swing plays against high level pitching.
the Roswell Space Invaders are looking to boost attendance.
rynoattack posted:fenwaysouth posted:The doubting Thomas's are queuing up on this one. Everybody's got an angle on this or that, and conspiracies are running rampant. Remember, Tebow is a very different athlete than anybody else. Anybody remember Bo Jackson? I'm not saying he is is the next Bo Jackson, but Bo surprised a few baseball people along the way. Before you bury Tebow, let's see what baseball skills he can bring to the table. He may surprise a few of us.
You have a good point, but I also agree, let's not compare Tebow to Bo Jackson! That's blasphemy. Michael Jordan couldn't do it, and I wouldn't compare Tim Tebow in any way shape or form to him. Just don't think it'll happen. There have been many instances where players have done football to baseball, or baseball to football, and not many have been successful. Most of the football to baseball guys didn't make it out of A Ball. I just think it is going to be too difficult.
This is not a slight on Tebow, but each year we see lots of great players not make it. I know a lot of people would love to see it happen, but minus a miracle, it's not...
Bo played SEC baseball and was very good. Tebow did not. Bo's game took the leap when he committed to it. He certainly had the talent to be a HOF football player since he put HOF Marcus Allen on the bench. He might have pushed it in baseball since he was on track to hit 400 to 500 homers pre steroids. If he got to 500 he would have been a lock.
IMO Bo was the greatest athlete that has ever lived and Tebow is not in his class and it isn't even close. Tebow is athletic enough to try baseball - but having the skills after laying off the game for this length of time is unlikely.
I'm a huge Tebow fan but agree with the doubters. Maybe a more comparable example is Russell Wilson (QB SEA). Russell could not make it past AA ball and gave it up for football. Having great leadership and athleticism does not equal MLB talent.
PGStaff posted:I can assure everyone that this is not a publicity stunt. There are former MLB players that think he has a good chance of making it to the Big Leagues. We have been contacted and are planning to see what he has.
As difficult as it may seem, almost impossible, Tebow is a very rare athlete and person. What a great story if this really happens. It would be outstanding for the game of baseball in so many ways.
2 comments would be
1. I don't know which professional players believe he has a chance but their are many ex players who live in an odd world where reality is not part of it. Some of them are also very observant and opinions should be valued...but not just because they have the resume of ex MLB. At a minimum I think you would need to define what a "good chance" is to have a meaningful conversation on it.
2. At least there will be very little projectable knowledge that needs to be accessed when you see him. He is what he is for size, arm strength, speed and so on. How much rust he is carrying will be a little tougher to determine. one comment I read online below, I can't believe 12 years of not playing baseball would have helped the bolded questions concerning him.
"He could have been a good prospect if he had played more," a scout who saw Tebow play in high school told MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. "He was super strong with power, though he was a bit stiff."
Saw yesterday that Gary Sheffield believes he can be an MLB batter. Sheffield's got a better idea than I (or any of us here) about what it takes to play in the MLB.....so at this point, I'm gonna go with his opinion
PGStaff posted:I can assure everyone that this is not a publicity stunt. There are former MLB players that think he has a good chance of making it to the Big Leagues. We have been contacted and are planning to see what he has.
As difficult as it may seem, almost impossible, Tebow is a very rare athlete and person. What a great story if this really happens. It would be outstanding for the game of baseball in so many ways.
I'm not anti-Tebow and, apparently, there are a lot of folks who know a whole lot more than I do that think he has a good chance. I acknowledge that he is a very rare athlete.
Here's my glaring doubt though - OF's have to hit (and they have to do it consistently against the best pitchers in the world). He has never hit against high level pitching. He will need a whole lot of AB's against progressively better pitching to catch up from where he left off (HS junior). So, IMO, even taking "ultra-athletic" and "extremely gifted" into account, he will need time. He's 28. By the time that happens, he will be 30+ and beginning the phase of physical decline. Just not enough time.
It would be fun to be proven wrong.
Buckeye 2015 posted:Saw yesterday that Gary Sheffield believes he can be an MLB batter. Sheffield's got a better idea than I (or any of us here) about what it takes to play in the MLB.....so at this point, I'm gonna go with his opinion
While his opinion may be better then mine or yours I don't necessarily agree that his is good or accurate. I saw the same interview you are referencing.
Buckeye 2015 posted:Saw yesterday that Gary Sheffield believes he can be an MLB batter. Sheffield's got a better idea than I (or any of us here) about what it takes to play in the MLB.....so at this point, I'm gonna go with his opinion
I LOVE Gary Sheffield myself, but there are PLENTY of Major League scouts that think he doesn't have a chance. We'll have to see where this all ends up, but just because Gary Sheffield thinks it is a possibility, doesn't make it so. I saw where Sheffield is now a Sports Agent? He is probably getting paid for his opinion.
He will sign with the Sugar Land Skeeters, an Indy team in Texas. They signed Tracy McGrady two years ago. They also had Scott Kazmir on their roster several years back when he was on the comeback trail.
I really like Tim Tebow. It would be an amazing story if he could do it. But this is what I am seeing. 28 years old and hasn't played in almost a decade. The highest level of pitching he has ever faced almost a decade ago is HS pitching. Now he is going to have success against pitching much better than he has ever seen almost a decade removed from the game? And if he has enough success to get a shot he is going to progress rapidly enough in the game to out run father time as his physically faculties start to decline like everyone who has ever played does.
He is going to do this because he is so dadgum determined. He is going to do this because he is an elite athlete. He is going to do this because he is Tim Tebow. And because some guys have seen him swing it in a cage and he looked great. Look I think it would be awesome if he lit it up and was a phenom and made it to the show. But if I am going to look at this realistically I say no way. He is not the only ridiculously determined elite athlete that couldn't make it. And he won't be the last. He is one of the few that started at 28 years old.
Just my opinion. I will be happy to be proven wrong.