![]() ![]() Who amongst the three of these legends was the best at baseball? Let’s dive in. Each of these three legends tried their hands at baseball careers with two of them being productive players on big league rosters. Sanders in the NFL (and College Football), Jordan in the NBA and Jackson in College Football. Three Hall of Famers in their own rights. It seems he's getting better.Īnd for whatever it's worth, he has more career home runs as a pro than Michael Jordan did.ĭanny Knobler covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.Deion Sanders. Tebow is 29 now, but it's pretty clear he has put his football career behind him. He was 31 the year he played baseball, but he still had basketball to go back to. If Michael had kept playing, I wouldn't have counted him out, either." "The one thing you can't put a number on is determination," said another National League scout who saw both Jordan and Tebow. Tebow isn't the athlete Jordan was, but he does have the drive of a player who reached the top level of the sport he first pursued. Tebow was not one of the greatest football players." Michael was one of the greatest basketball players of all time. I think if Michael had tried to do it earlier, he could have been a big leaguer. "Michael was fluid, agile, one of the best athletes of all time," the AL scout said. And he was such a good athlete that some believe he would have succeeded if he'd gone to baseball earlier. He was a better runner and a better outfielder. In other parts of the game, scouts who saw both play say Jordan was easily better. Last week, when he hit his fourth, the Twitter account took note: Tebow hit his fifth home run Wednesday night, in his 73rd game. He had 17 doubles in 1994 and 30 stolen bases. The next spring, during the strike, he gave up baseball and announced his return to the NBA (where he played six more seasons and won three more titles). He played in 127 games that season with the Barons, at age 31. The Chicago White Sox gave him a chance, and they played him in spring training games and an exhibition game at Wrigley Field before sending him to Birmingham. He was coming off three straight NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls, when he suddenly announced he needed a break and wanted to try baseball. "You can't believe the popularity," the NL scout said. He can hit a fastball (he homered off a 96 mph fastball, according to one scout), but even his power might be exaggerated ("I watched all of batting practice one day, and he didn't get a ball out of the park," the first scout said). He doesn't throw well ("The shortstop goes way out in the outfield to get the relay," said another). He doesn't run well ("Takes the smallest steps when he strides," said one scout). "One ball almost hit him in the head in the outfield," another said. ![]() He was diving for balls that fell 20 feet from where he started." "He works hard, but he's really stiff," one said. "Neither of them could deal with breaking balls," said the NL scout, who saw both play in the minor leagues. You can work and work, as Jordan did in 1994 and as Tebow has in 2017, but even hitting in the minor leagues can be too much of a challenge. ![]() "Saying that, he's not close to being a prospect."īaseball isn't easy, especially when you've been away from it for a decade while you pursue another sport. "He's actually swinging the bat a lot better," said a National League scout who saw him earlier this season in the South Atlantic League and then again this week after his promotion to the high-A Florida State League. The baseball talent is.well, at least Tebow seems to be improving. You have to be careful you don't get carried away just with the aura." "Tremendous charisma," an American League scout said after watching Tebow in the Florida State League this week. ![]()
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