Playing multiple sports in college is an impressive yet demanding task to achieve. However, doing that in the pros is something only freak athletes are able to pull off. Michael Jordan and Deion Sanders are two of them.
Their dominance in their respective sports has given them a GOAT status, but it was baseball that made the two test their limits both physically and mentally.
What called for a big difference between the two was that Michael Jordan took a year off from basketball to give a chance at baseball while Deion was involved in a constant tussle to play two sports side by side. This did take away the physical bandwidth from Prime but at the end of the day, it was a challenge that he needed to endure.
When MJ decided to play baseball in 1994, he was certainly motivated by Deion and Bo Jackson’s grind. But there was a much deeper reason behind it.
Michael Jordan’s Stint in Minor League Baseball
MJ had an illustrious 15-year career in the NBA but there was a time when he took a giant leap into the unchartered territory of baseball. He did so because his late father dreamt of Jordan playing in the MLB. However, when MJ tried to make that dream happen it did not end well.
Jordan’s agent, David Falk revealed how Jordan had put everything on the line to give a shot at the Minor League Baseball just to put himself through the criticism that followed. Although it wasn’t the smartest move made by the NBA GOAT but it certainly was personal for him.
Jordan during his stint with the Birmingham Barons in 1994, played in 127 games with a batting average of .202. According to baseball reference, he hit three home runs with 51 RBIs and 114 SOs, which one can argue is as forgettable as Deion Sanders playing for the Ravens.
Deion Sanders’ Career In Major League Baseball
Sanders had a unique personality in the sporting world. Not only was he married to football, but he also had an on-again off-again fling with baseball too. A fling that spanned nine seasons.
Although it was impressive to see him don two hats (or should we say helmets) at the same time, it was a nightmare to manage them both. Not only did it take a physical toll on him but the constant criticism from his own teammates and front office made this an extremely difficult task to achieve. But Prime is a survivor.
Despite the constant tussle to keep his two careers afloat, Deion managed to make a name in both arenas. Along with being the best cornerback in the league, Prime Time was also a standout player in the Braves.
In his interviews, he has often stated how hitting a baseball was much tougher than playing football. Furthermore, he has stated how he kept his Prime persona reserved for football and played baseball just as Deion.
As per baseball reference, in his nine seasons in Major League Baseball, Prime had a batting average of .263, hitting a total of 39 HRs with 352 SOs and 168 RBIs in 641 games played.
To put things in perspective, Deion hit an average of a little more than 4 HRs with 18.6 RBIs and 39 SOs while playing 71 games each season. There is no doubt that Prime was superior to MJ when it came to baseball but Jordan has a bigger legacy in the sporting world.