It’s safe to say that if you have athletic ability, it’s easier for you to excel at other sports other than your own, at least easier than for the average person. Of course, playing football isn’t like playing futbol (soccer) and playing basketball is nothing like playing baseball.
But there is one thing in common for athletes, and that’s athletic ability, agility and the motivation to do anything and everything in order to be in the best shape and to be able to compete at the top level. So, taking those factors into account, it’s no surprise that some of the best players to ever step onto a basketball court or football field had also excelled at other sports, even though they are different.
It just so happens that many who stepped onto the field for one sport or another had also excelled at baseball at some point in their lives, whether it was during their high school days, college days or even during their professional careers.
Baseball is unlike other sports when it comes to the draft. You can be drafted right out of high school, can be drafted several times and just because you were drafted doesn’t mean you have to play the game. There are plenty of players who were drafted and either opted to go to college and play in the NCAA for another few years before heading to professional baseball or decided to take their careers in an entirely other direction, to another sport. From John Elway to Tom Brady and even Tim Tebow, who wasn’t drafted but is now making his way through the minor leagues, there are a number of football players who once graced the diamond. But it’s not the only sport to represent on this list.
These 28 guys not only excelled at baseball, but were actually drafted to the MLB and decided to play elsewhere:
[post_page_title]John Elway[/post_page_title]
Could you image John Elway in pinstripes? Well it turns out the Yankees could. The Denver Broncos Hall of Fame quarterback was drafted as the last pick of the second round during the 1981 MLB draft to be an outfielder. At the time, Elway was playing for Stanford, and the Bronx Bombers offered him a $140,000 bonus. Elway spent a season in the minors, hitting .318/.432/.464 in 151 at-bats, with four homers to his name. Of course, Elway decided to stick with football, but still used his baseball career as leverage when he demanded the Baltimore Colts, who drafted him at the no. 1 overall spot in 1983, trade him.
