How Would Athletic Stars of the Past Fare Today?

From the moment man discovered the delight of kicking, throwing, and shooting spheroid and elliptical objects, there have been arguments over who is, or rather–who was, better.

The 1927 New York Yankees or the 1975 Cincinnati Reds? The Green Bay Packers of 1967 or the Pittsburgh Steelers of 1979? The 1993 Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls or Larry Bird’s 1983 Boston Celtics?

Well, an interesting question comes to mind: How would sports legends from ages past compare to their modern-day brethren ? Could they stand the test of time.

Let’s start with basketball. Bob Cousy, the leader from pro B-ball’s greatest dynasty, won 10 world championships during the Boston Celtics' historic reign (A team that won a record eight consecutive world titles in the 1960s). He was revered at the time as a ball-handling wizard.

Excuse me, but when was the last time you checked cable TV’s Greatest Games and watched Bob dish off a pass after dribbling the ball up court? Ugh!

Let’s be honest. Cousy’s skill level wouldn’t qualify him to start today for a Division II college team. He was slow, dribbled mostly with his right hand, couldn’t jump and had an average shot at best.

Given his slight build and height, the only professional basketball Mr. Cousy would be engaged in today would be watching it on TV.

Fine you say, what about football. Surely Gale Sayers would be as great today as he was back in the early 1970’s. Okay, let me modify my argument. Some vintage football players would still be able to perform admirably, maybe even excel.

However, given that the average size of a lineman has grown from 235 pounds to 295 over the past three decades, I say the speed, athleticism, size and conditioning of today’s athlete would make most football stars of yore look like mere bench warmers.

The Super Bowl champion 1968 Green Bay Packers would have a hard time staying out of the cellar if they were transported into today’s NFL.

Things have changed an awful lot in professional sports…except one. That would be America’s..er…pastime…baseball. Yeah, I know, baseball has become more specialized in the pitching department and batters spend far more time watching film and listening to coaching instructions.

However, are you going to tell me that Sandy Koufax wouldn’t be a star today? That Roberto Clemente wouldn’t be a threat to win the triple crown? That Lou Brock wouldn’t lead the league in stolen bases?

The ball is still thrown to the plate at about the same speed and velocity. The time it takes players to round the bases is virtually unchanged. If anything, there has been a significant dilution in the overall talent–especially in the area of pitching.

In fact, my main complaint with baseball today (steroids aside) is that the fundamental skills of the players is lower than that of their forefathers.

How many times does a fan have to watch an outfielder throw the ball to the wrong base and mutter to himself “these guys do this for a living? Even my son who is in Little League knows when to throw to second or third.”

Baseball and football games in the past were exciting because there was no superior “above the rim” standard with which to compare them.

They were the best of their day and deserve applause. From Bronco Nagurski to Dick Butkus, they brought to the game an accelerated level of performance. However, the players were smaller, slower and lacking in modern strength conditioning.

Even if they had the heart of a champion, the basketball and football champs of the glory days wouldn’t stand a chance against a modern team. Only in baseball would a star of the 1950’s still be a star today.