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Who is the greatest two-way athlete in sports history?

by YPB Team

Two sports, one body, and usually one injury that ended the experiment early.

  1. Babe Ruth — ranked #11
    Babe Ruth
    A 94-46 pitcher with a 2.28 ERA who then became the greatest hitter in the game.
  2. Shohei Ohtani — ranked #22
    Shohei Ohtani
    The first player since Ruth to be an elite starting pitcher and an elite slugger in the same season.
  3. Bo Jackson — ranked #33
    Bo Jackson
    An All-Star outfielder and a Pro Bowl running back, until a hip injury ended both careers.
  4. Jim Thorpe — ranked #44
    Jim Thorpe
    Olympic gold in the pentathlon and decathlon, then professional football and baseball.
  5. Jackie Robinson — ranked #55
    Jackie Robinson
    A four-sport letterman at UCLA before he changed baseball.
  6. Charlie Ward — ranked #66
    Charlie Ward
    A Heisman-winning quarterback who never played an NFL down and had an 11-year NBA career instead.
  7. Danny Ainge — ranked #77
    Danny Ainge
    A major league infielder who left baseball for two NBA championships with the Celtics.
  8. Babe Didrikson Zaharias — ranked #88
    Babe Didrikson Zaharias
    Olympic track gold, then ten major golf titles, with basketball and baseball in between.
  9. Jim Brown — ranked #99
    Jim Brown
    The NFL's most dominant running back, and arguably an even better lacrosse player.
  10. Chuck Connors — ranked #1010
    Chuck Connors
    Played in the NBA and Major League Baseball before becoming a television star.
  11. Brian Jordan — ranked #1111
    Brian Jordan
    A hard-hitting NFL safety who left for a 15-year major league outfield career.
  12. Michael Jordan — ranked #1212
    Michael Jordan
    Six NBA titles and a season in Double-A baseball that he insisted on taking seriously.
  13. Ellery Clark — ranked #1313
    Ellery Clark
    The only athlete to win Olympic gold in both the high jump and the long jump.
USA316sports664baseball26NFL52Athletes44

Comments

Ninety-four wins and a 2.28 ERA on the mound, and 501 strikeouts against Shohei Ohtani's 670 entering this season: https://youpick.best/articles/babe-ruth-ranked-many-ways

YP
ypb-team·Aug 21·
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