Perception of pre war baseball players vs other sports

[jakebeckleyoldeagleeye]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Are you saying you think he wouldn't do well?

Yes till they put one in his ear and he would wind up with plate in his head like Don Zimmer.

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by jakebeckleyoldeagleeye

Yes till they put one in his ear and he would wind up with plate in his head like Don Zimmer.

Why would you think he wouldn't learn to deal with that like the old-timers did?

[Gorditadogg]

Originally Posted by Huysmans

Considering the ESPN study I've mentioned previously, where hockey was ranked the #1 most skilled and difficult team sport in the world, it's fair to say relative to the time that hockey players were and are some of the best overall athletes. Period.



Judged by a "panel of experts, a group made up of sports scientists from the United States Olympic Committee, of academicians who study the science of muscles and movement, of a star two-sport athlete, and of journalists who spend their professional lives watching athletes succeed and fail", the study was based on 10 categories...



- endurance

- strength

- power

- speed

- agility

- flexibility

- durability

- nerve

- hand-eye coordination

- analytic aptitude



Hockey scored the highest for team sports second only to boxing, with football the #2 most skilled team sport. Baseball was ranked #9 overall.



Also, keep in mind that this was a study by an American organization, so there could have been bias towards the "American" Big 3 sports (many consider hockey Canadian), hence, hockey may have scored even higher.



There was also a second study by a group labeled "unbiased" recently where they came to the same top 3 conclusion (can't find it online).



https://www.espn.com/espn/page2/sportSkills

Well, sure. Playing a game on skates adds a level of difficulty no other sport can match. It still amazes me that they used to play without helmets. Or masks.

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[Tabe]

Originally Posted by puckpaul

I get that but they did use Americans back then in northern states, and it’s a big stretch to say that the US population is the pool today….maybe 3-4 states and a few other pockets. Europe does help a lot today to even it out, especially Russia/Sweden/Finland.

And I made a mistake, only 15 players on a team back in the 20-30’s at most, maybe fewer in the 20’s (don’t have my programs handy). The best players would still be the best players. The depth in the league is a problem today, most teams have little skill on the bottom half/two thirds of the roster even if the guys are in better shape and can skate.

In the 59/60 season, for example, there were 4 Americans in the entire league plus 2 Europeans. That's counting entire rosters, so 30+ guys per team, nearly 200 total.

The best players would still be the best but it's absolutely undeniable that the overall talent level - even with era adjustments - is significantly higher now.

The bottom half of the league is far more skilled than it's ever been. The unskilled cementheads of the past simply don't exist anymore.

[Gorditadogg]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Why would you think he wouldn't learn to deal with that like the old-timers did?

It's a fool that looks for logic in the chambers of the human heart. -Joel Coen

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by Gorditadogg

It's a fool that looks for logic in the chambers of the human heart. -Joel Coen

No, it's a fool that makes statements that defy logic in the human heart or anywhere else.