This game is harder!

but, it's a game some play into their 40's. your prime is late 20's early 30's. can't really compare to the other 2 sports.

I agree with you Rob. Baseball was always my favorite. My son came relatively late to the sport but it quickly became his favorite.

Why? I think that the challenge to master the many skills needed to play well, reward those players very intensely. That need to succeed at this very difficult sport owns and drives them.

Not sure I said that well enough to be understood but certainly, in any words, baseball is a very compelling sport to those who understand and play the game.

I agree Prime9.
To a certain extent, a kid can hide in s****r and lacrosse. In baseball, sooner or later each kid has to walk up to the plate with a bat in their hands with all eyes on them. Many kids can't handle that pressure. I give a lot of credit to kids who stick with baseball. As the saying goes ... "You don't strike out in s****r."

BaseballByTheYard

My son played all 3 for years. Chose to concentrate solely on baseball in HS because he says the same thing you say basically. Baseball offers more mental challenge in his opinion than the other sports. Now before folks jump on me, I said in HIS OPINION folks! I do know that his thought processes have matured tremendously since he has concentrated only on baseball. He tends to look at the "big picture" of any given situation. I like to think that is because of his position as catcher.

A recent opinion piece in the Boston Globe:

Fearless advice: Play ball
By Kevin Paul Dupont March 13, 2011

This was always my favorite time of the year in high school. Baseball is about to start (first practices in Eastern Massachusetts schools begin a week from tomorrow), and that was the game that framed my school year, my life. From the age of 6 or so, right through my last days of high school, nothing captured my attention, meant more to me, than playing baseball.

Yes, I was that kid, the one who kept a small store of cardboard inserts, usually from my dad’s dry-cleaned shirts, and meticulously turned them into scorecards to use when watching Red Sox games on TV or listening on the radio (your host tonight: Atlantic Red Ball Service).

That would be the same kid who thought the best board game in the world consisted of a small block of wood, tiny metal spinner attached in the middle, the pointer coming to rest on the words “home run’’ or “ground out’’ or “double’’ that were carved into the wood with ballpoint pen. With each finger flick of the arrow, of course, you flipped to the next player in your stack of baseball cards. Eddie Bressoud? Oh, forget it, next card.

Although it seems incredibly shallow to me now, playing ball back then remains a part of me today, albeit a tiny part. As a player, clearly I wasn’t very good, but I thought I was good, for years believing that — get this — I could make it to the major leagues.

Trust me, it’s embarrassing to put that in print, but I take some solace in the fact that press boxes throughout the bigs have been filled for decades by guys who thought the same way when they were 10, 12, maybe even up until they were sophomores in high school, which was about the time I began to realize my rinky-dink curveball and unsteerable knuckler weren’t going to get me any further.

I was right about that. In June 1971, the spring of my senior year at Bedford High School, I turned in my laundered (thanks, mom) blue-and-white uniform and never played again. I remember thinking I would play again — heck, I was baseball, how could I not play again? — but it was gone for good.

Cars, dates, college, most of all a career undertaken midway through my sophomore year at Boston University (chosen in part for its proximity to Fenway Park) . . . all of it shifted my playing days further and further to the back pages of my mental scrapbook.

Like virtually every other part of our lives, high school baseball around here has changed dramatically, and not just because everyone uses those ridiculous pinging metal bats now. Most of all, it’s a numbers thing. Fewer kids are playing, most of all because of lacrosse, a game that had virtually zero presence in Boston and most of its suburbs when I was a kid.

Today, there are still ballplayers out in the burbs, but lacrosse has significantly diminished the number of boys who try out for baseball and track, and the number of girls who try out for track and softball.

Lacrosse right now is the thing in high school spring sports. Why?

“They look more to lacrosse because they want instant gratification and they’re afraid of failure — something not true in baseball,’’ said Phil Vaccaro, longtime athletic director at Reading High School. “Baseball’s got a lot of stand-around time, and what kid today wants to strike out or have the ball go through his legs? Fear of failure.

“They’d rather be out there playing lacrosse, where they blend in, and if you make a mistake, hey, so what? Probably no one’s going to see it or say anything about it.’’

Vaccaro, 61, grew up in Somerville, playing baseball wherever and whenever it could be played, and is a certified brother of diamond dreams.

“To this day,’’ he said — and I made him say it twice because it felt so good to hear — “I still dream about playing a ball off the Wall at Fenway.’’

Someone clinging both to that dream and an AARP card? Priceless.

The whole idea of baseball being a metaphor for life is vastly overdone. It’s true, of course, but no more or less so than any sport, including lacrosse and s****r and boxing and football. Whatever your sport, your championships will be few, your losses many, and your lessons even more.

Understandable, I suppose, not wanting to play baseball because of all the down time, although I do remember swapping some cherished insults and gossip while sitting on the bench. It’s also often cold here in the spring, and I’ll admit that doesn’t play well to down time, unless the insults and gossip are really good.

But as for that fear-of-failure thing, I know that all too well, I understand it, and I wouldn’t want it for anyone. It ends up such a buzz-kill in your life.

Most of us, I suppose, gravitate to what we do well, what is safe, where we will succeed, what exposes us to the least amount of discomfort and potential criticism and ridicule. It’s not so much about seeking the easy way out, but about going to our known abilities and limitations, being reluctant to attempt what might be embarrassing or angst-ridden. Hey, be the first to raise your hand if you’d like to be the fool? I get that.

What’s funny to me now, hearing that many kids opt for lacrosse because they fear the failure of baseball, is that I chose baseball because I feared so many other things, such as being in school plays, playing an instrument, swimming, public speaking, trying out for football, and other things I care not to make public until I am at least in my late 90s.

Baseball was my focus as a kid. It’s what I did, who I was, at least that’s how I thought of it. Significant chunks of that went on to serve me very well. But if you care to heed the advice of a faded, very average high school pitcher who declined to investigate what else was out there, then understand that high school is the time to play it and enjoy it, win it and lose it, excel with it and botch it, embrace it, and let it go.

Years from now, decades from now, the only one who will remember what you did in these games is you. I would tell you to go play baseball. Then I would tell you to make sure you play everything else.
Kevin Paul Dupont’s “On Second Thought’’ appears on Page 2 of the Sunday Globe Sports section. He can be reached at dupont@globe.com.

Obviously I believe baseball is the greatest game of all, but I actually think it is much harder to play at the very highest professional level in both football and basketball. I'm saying this from a physical and talent perspective.

To play in the NFL you need either unbelievable athletic ability and speed and/or unusaual size and strength. To play in the NBA the same thing is true and there are far fewer spots (smaller rosters). Other than one position, isn't every NBA player a "great" athlete. There have been lots of Major League players who wouldn't be considered "great" athletes. Of course, there have been many "great" athletes who were MLB players, too. It's just that you don't have to be a great athlete or have unusual size to play in the Major Leagues.

Plus the options in the NFL or NBA to play and learn at a minor league level is nowhere near what baseball offers. Plus the baseball draft is much larger than the other sports which creates more opportunities for more players.

I just feel like more young kids have much better odds playing Major League baseball than playing in the NFL and especially the NBA.

Comparing MLB to NBA... I wonder how many parents think their son might someday have a chance to be a Major League player and how many think their son will have a chance to play in the NBA.

Of course reaching the top level of any sport is extremely hard! And I agree with Rob Kremer when he says...

quote:

The fact is, baseball is possibly the hardest sport to master.

But at the same time, I think more people have the required "athletic ability and physical attributes" to master the sport of baseball and reach the top.

Just my opinion, FWIW, probably not much.

PGStaff- I agree about the physical aspects of the games in comparison. The acquiring of the athleticism to compete at a high level in baseball is easier than in basketball and football, but the mastering of the sport-specific skills IMO is more difficult in baseball.

I would disagree, however, with the sentiment that the pure odds of younger athletes having a better opportunity of reaching the MLB than the NFL or NBA. Worldwide, there are many more people playing baseball than basketball or American football. So despite the athletic perspective being spot on, the sheer numbers might perhaps suggest otherwise.

Some more food for thought: soc-cer, the most popular sport in the world by far, doesn't require size or brute strength like American football and basketball do. It also doesn't require the particular and difficult skill set that baseball does (hand-eye coordination is what I'm mainly thinking of...it's a bit easier to kick a soc-cer ball than hit a 90 mph fastball). However, by sheer numbers of participants, it is possibly the most difficult team sport to be a professional in throughout the entire world.

JH,

Actually basketball is probably more of an international sport than baseball. It sure is a bigger deal to the Olympic committee.

I really don't know this, but I would guess the % of foreign players in the NBA is just as high as MLB.

I'm leaning more towards the number of amateurs... kids... that are playing the game(s) around the world. I'm obviously more knowledgable about baseball than the other sports, just as others here. But I still think that there are more kids playing baseball around the world than there are basketball. Just my opinion, I could be way off base.

Either way, I think this is an interesting discussion and something that could be studied at a much deeper level. I'd like to see a High School Basketball Web or High School Football Web forum and post this same topic and see some of the opinions that stem from the initial post. I wonder if it'd prove that there is a generally accepted opinion, or if there is some egocentric perspective of the comparisons.

quote:

Originally posted by PGStaff:
Obviously I believe baseball is the greatest game of all, but I actually think it is much harder to play at the very highest professional level in both football and basketball. I'm saying this from a physical and talent perspective.

To play in the NFL you need either unbelievable athletic ability and speed and/or unusaual size and strength. To play in the NBA the same thing is true and there are far fewer spots (smaller rosters). Other than one position, isn't every NBA player a "great" athlete. There have been lots of Major League players who wouldn't be considered "great" athletes. Of course, there have been many "great" athletes who were MLB players, too. It's just that you don't have to be a great athlete or have unusual size to play in the Major Leagues.

Plus the options in the NFL or NBA to play and learn at a minor league level is nowhere near what baseball offers. Plus the baseball draft is much larger than the other sports which creates more opportunities for more players.

I just feel like more young kids have much better odds playing Major League baseball than playing in the NFL and especially the NBA.

Comparing MLB to NBA... I wonder how many parents think their son might someday have a chance to be a Major League player and how many think their son will have a chance to play in the NBA.

Of course reaching the top level of any sport is extremely hard! And I agree with Rob Kremer when he says...

quote:

The fact is, baseball is possibly the hardest sport to master.

But at the same time, I think more people have the required "athletic ability and physical attributes" to master the sport of baseball and reach the top.

Just my opinion, FWIW, probably not much.

I agree with some of your post, such as the number of positions available to play in basketball.

Having said that, I think you may be putting a higher emphasis on certain physical attributes needed for one sport vs. another.
For instance we all know the speed/athleticism is coveted in many sports, certainly in football and basketball. It is not as important in baseball for every position, but is still sought after for defense and base running. That said, the skill it takes to hit a MLB pitch is incredible hand to eye coordination, which is more important than the aforementioned athleticism.
Many more knowledgeable people than I have said consistently hitting a MLB pitch is the most difficult thing to do in professional sports. So players like Ted Williams or Ty Cobb may not have been the fastest or most athletic guys compared with athletes in other sports. However their specific skill set was unmatched by those other athletes.

My view is that anyone, even bench warmers that make it to the professional ranks in any sport, are to be respected for their skill and commitment in achieving what few of us can. Each sport will need a specific skill set to be successful, whether it be physical and/or mental. No one skill is going to translate into every aspect of another sport.

in a game where the greatest hitter of all time made an out 6 of 10 times (ba 409). and has a statue at the HOF. ya really gotta love the game of baseball.

Great topic.
The OP makes two different statements and we could go off on very lengthy threads with each...

1. ...the harder sport to succeed in at the professional level.

2. ...the hardest sport to master.

Regarding #1, I think it is a numbers game as JH and PG alluded to. However, I believe the correct answer by definition must be number of professionals (at the highest level - thus successful) today divided by total number of youth, amatuer and lower level professionals today.

#2. - I think the more a person knows the finer points of any sport, the more they will believe that is the hardest sport to master. I do think there is merit to the argument that reaching the MLB typically requires extended development past college, which is not the case with most other sports. However, I also know that baseball is one of the easiest games to bash if you don't know the finer points and you are factoring in athleticism.

I think the whole "only successful 3 out of 10 and you're considered great" thing with hitters gets overplayed. Yes, hitting at the highest level is very difficult. But you can make the same argument for three point shooting success in basketball, goals per shot on goal in so****rrr, scores per posession in football, etc. Baseball fielders are successful in over 90% of tries.

I do love to see top performers in one sport try their hand at a higher level game at another. That's when we all gain a bit more appreciation for those other sports. Even when the girls fastpitch players take on the MLB hitters and the guys can't touch the rise ball...

Would you make that same assertion, if the best athletic specimens in basketball and football had started playing baseball when our kids did, and made it their number one sport? Would some of our kids still be at the same level of baseball if competing with these kids?

My son has played Division 1 basketball and elite baseball. He dropped basketball this year and will play High School the rest of the way through. Other than my son, every kid out of twelve on his 13U basketball team was a genetic specimen. More guys on that team had full muscle definition and six-packs than not. One guy was 5’7” and could touch rim with the second knuckle. There was a guy 6’0” on another team that could consistently dunk. Another guy on our team was the fastest sprinter in a population of 300,000 (and who knows where he might have stacked up provincially).

At competitive levels, the skills of basketball, football, and hockey all require almost all of a players time to develop. These sports require one to execute highly complex moves at a high degree of speed and to varying degrees while under physical contact with opponents. With plays, and flow, etc. they aren’t as simple as they first appear.

Take a 16U team of All State baseball players, and put them on skates. They would be hard-pressed at the end of one year (working hard) to skate with a top city-rep 14U team. Most would probably struggle to be able to make a consistent good pass (or take one) let alone stick-handle well or balance well enough to shoot against decent competition. I even think the 14U’s despite smaller size would win the hitting game because they are better trained to do so and faster. If you went the other way around, and spent the same time working on hitters and pitchers with a 16U AAA hockey team (guys that have worked and dry-land trained for years), I think you could play at very competitive levels. One MLB scout has proved that here.

I don’t subscribe to any particular sport being superior to another. I believe any sport being pursued at it’s highest competitive levels consumes much of the time and energy of its players to play at that level.

Notlongtilicantcatchim- I might have read this wrong, but are you saying that you can train 16u hockey players to be good baseball players, but you can't train 16u baseball players to be good hockey players? If I interpreted this the right way, your last statement that "I don't subscribe to any particular sport being superior to another" is quite contradictory.

Statistically, basketball is the hardest sport to become a pro.

According to a 2010 release by NCAA, the percentages of college athletes that are drafted by a professional team are:

Men’s Basketball - 1.2%
Football - 1.8%
Baseball - 8.9%
Men’s Ice Hockey - 3.7%
Men’s S****r - 1.6%

Available figures for high school are more outdated but similar in regards to rankings.

Most "experts" consider boxing the toughest sport to reach the top level.

I would say winning the 100 meters at the Olympics to be the hardest feat statistically speaking. Every kid in the world runs races and faster kids are easy to identify... not everyone in the world plays other sports. So the base of the pyramid that Usain Bolt sits atop is the biggest in my view.

quote:

Originally posted by Rob Kremer:
Allow me to make an assertion that I believe is quite defensible: Baseball is a harder sport to succeed in at the professional level than any other major sport.

Here is my evidence:

In basketball, it is not unusual for high school grads to make an NBA team. Who was the last 19 year old to make MLB? ARod?

In football, there are many 21 and 22 year old impact players. In MLB, there are almost none.

The fact is, baseball is possibly the hardest sport to master.

Why did our sons choose this sport?

In my first post I responded to PG's post, but let me also address yours. While I agree with you about the impact young players have in their respective sports, tennis might be the most difficult to be successful in from a statistical standpoint. Kids from all over the world play, yet few make it into the top 100. If you are not consistently in the top 50, you struggle to make a living, and the challenger circuit(tennis minor leagues)the players actually lose money with all the expenses.
Being an individual sport, there is no one to give you a breather, nor can you have a bad day and bounce back the next.
I remember an interview done with Pete Sampras when he was #1 in the world. They asked why he did not win as many tourneys as Tiger. He replied that if Tiger had a bad day he could come back the next day and make up for it. In tennis if he had a bad day, he was out of the tournament.
I suspect boxing is another individual sport where it is very difficult to make it to the highest ranks.

As to why our sons chose baseball, I think my son chose it because he knew both I and his grandfather loved the game. He would see us having a game of catch together and wanted to play also.
The fact that I enrolled him in an baseball academy at the age of 3 probably also had something to do with it.

On a personal level I found basketball easier to play. Part of that may be because it was the sport I practiced the most at, but nothing required on the court seemed impossible. I could dunk at a young age(though it was prohibited when I was in HS), dribble, pass, shoot, rebound, etc.
Conversely, playing baseball in HS was more difficult for me, especially hitting. Now I could use the excuse that since I was primarily a pitcher, I didn't get as many AB's. In reality I knew my ability to hit a curve consistently was an Achilles Heel. I'm not sure that I ever would have gotten much better hitting off speed pitches no matter how hard I tried.
Granted I was not an elite athlete, but I bet we could take someone like Lebron James and make him look silly trying to hit MLB pitching. Yet he could probably do many things well in other sports just because he is such a great athlete.

I just think that each sport requires different physical and mental skill sets, and especially hitting in baseball is the most difficult to master.

Notlong -
Where I think your argument falls apart (besides what J H points out about the blatant contradiction) is that baseball is pretty much alone among sports in its lengthy "apprentice" term.

Hockey players don't spend 4 years in the minors after college to play in the NHL.

Acually, very few hockey players go from high school to college. Most go to junior leagues, like the midwest(USHL) for a few years before college. It's like the cape cod league for about 6 months , unpaid. Then they go to college. It's not unusual to see 20 year old freshman on hockey teams in college.
I think making the PGA tour is the hardest.You don't make it on potential , only results.

quote:

Originally posted by Rob Kremer:
Notlong -
Where I think your argument falls apart (besides what J H points out about the blatant contradiction) is that baseball is pretty much alone among sports in its lengthy "apprentice" term.

Hockey players don't spend 4 years in the minors after college to play in the NHL.

Interesting.
I really think that there are many players (baseball) that could play at the highest level, sooner rather than later.

The reason that it is harder to succeed is because in most ML organizations, you have to put in many years in the minors and by that time, for many, injury ends careers.

The switch from one type of bat to another also has a lot to do with it the game being harder.

The game of baseball is so intriging, I was watching a college game last week (UF vs. FSU) and the strategy between coaches probably made it the best game I have seen all year (college or professional).

Is there any other sport that can match that?

BTW, we got into watching rugby this year, now that's grueling!!!!

I did a poor job of explaining myself. I was trying to say, IMHO baseball doesn’t get the alpha athletes, the way other sports do. Here, hockey gets the alpha’s and basketball does to some degree as well. I think Football and basketball in the US. My point was more that whatever sport the dominant athletic group puts it’s mind to, statistically they are going to succeed in numbers at its highest level. Not in every case but, statistically in the majority.

I could have used basketball in the Chicago area vs. baseball as an example.

Hockey has a much earlier timeline that a lot of people take for granted when it comes to skating. My son, not a hockey player, was on skates close to a dozen times before 2 YO. From then on, he was in figure skating, power skating, as well as some hockey by the time he was 7 YO. Thinking back, and we live in a small town (12,000): my son did figure skating; power skating; and played on a co-ed hockey team at 6 YO. Power skating is like asking basketball players to run suicides for 45 minutes straight with awkward equipment on and little let-up. Drills like drop to your belly and push yourself up, forwards-to-backwards-to-forwards, etc. Unlike a basketball team doing suicides at random pace, every kid eventually sees their break-point. Legions do this, male and female, for years before 7 YO.

If you’re a HS Freshman hockey player with a shot and your draft year is next year, how hard are you working compared to a HS Baseball Freshman? $20 K a year is paying for something. They are going hard all year long. Many go to High Schools oriented to facilitate the process.

It’s kind of funny but, if I said “Let’s watch a hockey game” to my son (he has a vague memory of how the sport is played) he would likely say “Is that even a sport?” Something he was immersed in for years but, so far back really doesn’t understand the rules anymore… how… un-Canadian.

I still maintain that if you are “all-in” in any sport – and you are physically/genetically capable of playing that sport at the highest level – every sport is as tough as the next because the job is never done.

I’m sure many s****r fans would watch a short-stop go far into the hole and whirl and make a throw to first and think hmmm…. that’s easy… what a ridiculous sport. That SS though was one of a thousand players (not the general population) that could get to the ball in the first place. Because he was one of the few that could retrieve a ball that deep, he had the reps to whirl and attempt that longer throw with accuracy and regularity. Every sport has those things that outsiders or people at lower levels couldn’t possibly understand – the difference makers.

teaching baseball to kids can be/is difficult. the game is slower for kids vs basketball or s****r. much more failure in baseball. for most,you love it from an early age.

this post was about mlb players mastering the game. i'm not sure you need to master the game to play mlb. but then again there are only 750 doing it.

quote:

Originally posted by J H:
PGStaff- I agree about the physical aspects of the games in comparison. The acquiring of the athleticism to compete at a high level in baseball is easier than in basketball and football, but the mastering of the sport-specific skills IMO is more difficult in baseball.

This statement sums it all up. Also, as well as mastering the sport specific skills in baseball is the instincts necessary to succeed in baseball. Perhaps that ties in with the sport-specific skill piece but you can know what to do in every baseball situation but if you don't have the instincts, you can not execute successully what you're trying to accomplish.

Baseball requires more "specialized skills."

August rolls around and my boy (he is young) and I throw the football and run a few patterns for 10 or 20 minutes and he is ready for flag football. In late November, Basketball and he works on driving for layups, free throws and shots from the field.

February comes and we spend hours on grounders, left foot forward coming up throwing to 1st, double plays, bobbled grounder drills, fly balls getting under the ball and catching on the throwing side, long toss, not to mention hundreds plus of bp pitches.

PG pretty much nailed it. Baseball success requires intangibles that include infinite patience and an acquired taste for defeat.

Older son was drafted in 2nd round at age 17 based on size, speed, and athleticism (CF). Got frustrated with slow development there and went to college. Football team got him on the field this Spring and is now training him at quarterback. He loves it and the game comes easy to him.

Younger son is steadily working his way as a college hitter and impact player for his team. His cerebral approach to the game is different and it's working for him.

Two different guys, two different sports.

Honestly I don't think it matters what sport gets the best athletes. I'm pretty sure we all could ask Michael Jordan how easy baseball is. Is he not one of the best athletes of all time? Baseball isn't always about who is the biggest or most athletic and if you honestly think that you haven't seen enough baseball.

junior5,

I've actually seen quite a bit of baseball.

You are correct, Baseball is not always about who is biggest or most athletic. Though both are attractive ingredients.

I think if we are talking "hardest" to master, baseball would be right up there. If we are talking the "hardest" to reach the top, I think that would be the NBA. Because in addition to mastering the game, it requires either great size or unbelievable and great athlete. Plus the number of opportunities are far fewer. You can be drafted in the 25th round in baseball and make the Major League 25 man (40 man) roster. There is no 25th round in the NBA draft and the rosters are what? 12?

Regarding Jordan he didn't play baseball since he was an underclassman in high school. I don't think anyone can do that in basketball either. He played in AA League and hit .200. Not many that have not played baseball for some 15 years and in their thirties hit .200 in Double A. There are AA players that hyave played their whole life that hit .200.

Baseball is the greatest game. But if two children are born today, they will have a better chance of playing Major League baseball than playing in the NBA. Not sure how to prove that, though. JMI

PGStaff,
I agree with you about the opportunity to play at the highest level. I was more focused on the idea that you can take athletes from another sport and just turn them into baseball players. That idea is just unrealistic.That's why I brought up the Michael Jordan comment.

OK, most will concede that it is very difficult to be a successful major league hitter. Not every great athlete can do that.

What about taking some monsters from other sports and making them pitchers? How hard would that be?

I think that is a lot more reasonable that hitting. Still if you give Peyton Manning a baseball I don't think he would be able to do it in any reasonable amount of time.

Is Michael Jordan a good example at all?

He was working at 2 sports concurrent. I seem to vaguely remember he couldn't hit a high inside fastball and once the pitchers realized that it was over.

If we went back to when he was 15 or 16, lets assume baseball was his only focus. Let's further assume he was in love with the game enough to work at it and assume he had access to soemone capable of teaching him proper hitting mechanics.

Instead, we are comparing a guy maintaining All Star status in another sport who has enough tools to play MiLB but, who probably doesnt have the time to adjust - while performing.

I have watched a number of kids try to not just adjust but, try to re-build their hitting style as many have here. Studies show it takes 8000 reps before a new mechanical skill becomes solid. This winter I've watched a kid who was a LH thrower but RH hitter try to get his hitting moved across to the LH side. Since September, he's been at it two to three days a week but, still a long way to go.

I think you can turn natural atheletes to baseball but, not without three or four years to do so. If we're saying that guys are just going to walk out of their primary sport into baseball - not likely.

On a funny note, I listened to the Canadian Director of the Major League Baseball Scouting Bureau tell an interesting story about Steve Nash recently. Nash was a capable athlete in s****r, baseball, and basketball. The guy tried to get him to see the folly of entering the sport of basketball where there was very little chance of him doing anything. Baseball on the other hand appeared to have a far brighter future.

Notlong...,
You did say that you could take a 16U hockey team and turn them into a "very competitive" baseball team. Why is one of the best athletes ever not a good example but 16yr old hockey players are? It seems a little outrageous for me to believe that.

I also said in a later post that I should have used an example of a Chicago area basketball team.

I agree that Jordan was one of the best examples ever. In fact a better athletic example than the players on some hockey team. I do think that he had a flaw with his hitting mechanics that had he had the time and inclination to fix, he would have been successful.

Personally, I believe that Jordan was more than capable athletically. Did he have it in him to want to adjust? Did he have the time to spend to adjust with his other sport? Did the ball clubs want to invest more time in the experiment? Did he have the inclination?

quote:

Most "experts" consider boxing the toughest sport to reach the top level.

There is still a sport called boxing? I have not seen or heard about it in years.

Notlong...,
You make very good points, Jordan probably was not the most motivated to adjust and do everything necessary to be a successful baseball player.

First let me say that while I have played many sports - I have not ever played any sport well. I have observed young athletes in many sports. I believe that what makes an oustanding player - in most any sport - is a combination of 3 things -

• A sense for the game *can it even be taught?* (in basketball where all the players are and where they are going to be - in baseball where the ball is likely to go off the bat - what the pitcher is likely to throw - when a runner may try to steal - etc.)
  
  
• The physical attributes that are best suited to a particular sport / position.
  
  
• The passion for the game that results in practice - study - and patience.

When these align in one player you have the makings of a pro. The sports that have the physical demands that the lowest percentage of the population can meet may be the most difficult to master. (ie height required for basketball) No answer - just a framework for analysis. Regarding the ability to change sports - I wonder about the passion piece.

quote:

Originally posted by meachrm:
I agree Prime9.
To a certain extent, a kid can hide in s****r and lacrosse. In baseball, sooner or later each kid has to walk up to the plate with a bat in their hands with all eyes on them. Many kids can't handle that pressure. I give a lot of credit to kids who stick with baseball. As the saying goes ... "You don't strike out in s****r."

BaseballByTheYard

Hold it! I want to stop you from displaying ignorance. At a quality level of competition there isn't one sport where a player can hide. In high school s0ccer I could tell whose fault the open shot on goal was because I could tell if a player was three feet out of position on a large field. There's no hiding at the elite level in any sport.

It drives me nuts when posters look at elite level s0ccer like it's rec ball. As far as lacrosse goes I've never seen a hitter (baseball) getting bashed by a stick as he tries to help his team's offense. Every sport at an elite level is extremely difficult. Put a baseball player, a s0ccer player and a lacrosse player out in a field and tell them to run until there's only one standing. Tip: Bet on the baseball player to be the first to go down, and early compared to the other two.

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Comparing MLB to NBA... I wonder how many parents think their son might someday have a chance to be a Major League player and how many think their son will have a chance to play in the NBA.

When my son was twelve he wanted to play college basketball and baseball. Without getting into season overlap I warned him he would grow up to be the 6'1" or 6'2" white kid.

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Originally posted by trojan-skipper:
I would say winning the 100 meters at the Olympics to be the hardest feat statistically speaking. Every kid in the world runs races and faster kids are easy to identify... not everyone in the world plays other sports. So the base of the pyramid that Usain Bolt sits atop is the biggest in my view.

If the runner screws up he has to wait four years for another chance. Talk about having to maintain mental toughness to try again!