While people don’t inherently think of elite athleticism when they think of baseball—the reality is that there are actually a number of elite athletes that have played over the years, who could’ve had successful football careers as well.
Let’s take a look back and pick out the 10 that would’ve had the best chance to make it in the NFL
Jackie Robinson
Of course, Jackie Robinson is best known for breaking the color barrier in baseball, but he was one of the best all-around athletes of his generation. During his time at UCLA, he lettered in four sports, including football and led the country in punt returning.
Oh—and he happened to lead UCLA in passing, rushing, and scoring during his senior year. Safe to assume he would’ve been fine making the transition to the NFL.
Frank Thomas
The “Big Hurt” as he was affectionately called during his MLB career, was actually one of the best tight ends in the country coming out of high school. So much so, he was able to earn a football scholarship to Auburn University.
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Unfortunately, Thomas injured his ankle during his freshman year, and decided to go with baseball full-time. Auburn’s coach at the time, Pat Dye, thought so highly of Thomas that he honored his scholarship even after he quit the team—perhaps holding out hope that Frank would one day have a change of heart. Instead, he followed his baseball journey all the way to Cooperstown!
Kirk Gibson
When people think Kirk Gibson, they think of his legendary, hobbled home run, not football. But Gibson was actually one of the top receivers in college football during his time at Michigan State, even earning All-American honors his senior year.
Jeff Samardzija
Jeff Samardzija was not only offered to play both football and baseball at Notre Dame, he actually did for his entire time on campus. The speedy wide receiver was Brady Quinn’s number-one target at the time and a finalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award. He even set the school’s all-time receiving record.
But after a long deliberation, he decided to pursue baseball at the professional level instead and had a 13-year career, even earning All-Star honors. Given his resume though, it feels like a safe bet that he would’ve excelled in either sport.
Adam Dunn
Long before Adam Dunn was mashing homerun in MLB, he was actually a promising two-sport athlete, as the Texas native excelled both on the diamond and the gridiron.
Dunn actually had plans to pursue both at the University of Texas—and worked out a deal with the Reds and the University that allowed him to play Minor league Baseball in the summer before football season. UT, however, decided to redshirt Dunn behind Major Applewhite and once they asked him to convert from quarterback to tight end—he decided to drop the sport entirely.
Joe Mauer
While Joe Mauer never ended up pursuing college football, he very well could’ve, as he was one of the most accomplished high school quarterbacks in Minnesota at that time. He threw for 5528 yards and 73 touchdowns during his two seasons—and was widely considered one of the best quarterbacks in his class.
Mauer committed to Florida State in May of 2001, but once the Twins took him with the number one overall pick in the MLB draft and the signing bonus was put in front of him, he thought better of tripping down to Tallahassee.
Matt Holliday
Oklahoma State tried desperately to keep Holliday, who was an All-American and the Gatorade Player of the Year in high school, on the gridiron, but something about baseball really resonated with him.
Despite being the third-ranked quarterback in his class, he decided to sign a minor league deal with the Rockies, who sweetened the pot by playing him over 800 grand, despite taking him in the seventh-round, fearing that without the extra motivation, he’d wander back to the gridiron.
Carl Crawford
Carl Crawford is known for his speed on the basepaths, but he was an all-around athlete like you wouldn’t believe. He had scholarship offers to play both basketball and football in college.
He signed a letter of intent to play quarterback at Nebraska, but ultimately made a wise financial decision to sign with the Rays when they took him in the second round of the ’99 Draft.
Todd Helton
Growing up in Knoxville, Tennessee, Todd Helton was one of the best athletes around, earning Gatorade Player of the Year honors for both football and baseball. He parlayed that into a scholarship to the University of Tennessee, where he sat behind Heath Shuler for two years.
Helton got slotted into the starting lineup his junior year, but busted up his knee against Mississippi State and was replaced by a guy you might’ve heard of—Peyton Manning. That same year, Helton earned National Collegiate Baseball Player of the Year honors though, so, it feels like it worked out fairly well for both he and Peyton
Grady Sizemore
Coming out of high school, Grady Sizemore was a sensational running back—and had intentions of playing football and baseball at the University of Washington. The Cleveland Indians, however, were able to sway him with the help of a $2 million signing bonus.
