Baseball V Cricket?

[_Ed_]

I really enjoy baseball, and would vote for MLB ahead of any domestic cricket competition. International cricket beats it, though.

 

[Jayzamann]

Reckon someone like Gilchrist might be pretty decent at baseball if they practiced enough.

tbf, any number of professional baseball players, if brought up in a cricket nation, would do well in cricket. Likewise for professional cricketers. Had their parents moved them to the US at a young age, they'd be top-notch baseball players.

It's pretty much the same thing with gridiron and rugby. The archetypical players from each would do well in either sport, given the preparation and skill learning, muscle memory, etc.

 

[silentstriker]

tbf, any number of professional baseball players, if brought up in a cricket nation, would do well in cricket. Likewise for professional cricketers. Had their parents moved them to the US at a young age, they'd be top-notch baseball players.

It's pretty much the same thing with gridiron and rugby. The archetypical players from each would do well in either sport, given the preparation and skill learning, muscle memory, etc.

Completely disagree. The skillsets are different enough that I don't think the same people would succeed. Throwing a baseball is not the same as bowling a cricket ball. A 90mph fast bowler in cricket won't be an ace pitcher in baseball, and vice versa.

Same thing with batsmen, while a few could do well, the power and hand eye coordination in baseball is immense, and different from the skillset that most cricket batsmen have. Yes, some people would do well, but aside from generally being more athletic than the normal population, I don't see a particular advantage, except in fielding.

 

[AaronK]

Baseball to slow and boring

 

[Athlai]

Completely disagree. The skillsets are different enough that I don't think the same people would succeed. Throwing a baseball is not the same as bowling a cricket ball. A 90mph fast bowler in cricket won't be an ace pitcher in baseball, and vice versa.

Same thing with batsmen, while a few could do well, the power and hand eye coordination in baseball is immense, and different from the skillset that most cricket batsmen have. Yes, some people would do well, but aside from generally being more athletic than the normal population, I don't see a particular advantage, except in fielding.

Yeah I can't see a batter being much of a batsman besides maybe in T20 cricket. Cricket is a bit more than wild swinging (so is baseball granted but to a far far lesser extent). Can't see a pitcher being much of a bowler either with their top heavy frames.

I'd probably say if the sports did a crossover the baseball team would be far more woeful at cricket than the cricketers at baseball. Almost purely because cricket is such a hard game to adapt to while baseball is ironically for a game played between so few nations a tad more universal.

 

[silentstriker]

Yeah I can't see a batter being much of a batsman besides maybe in T20 cricket. Cricket is a bit more than wild swinging (so is baseball granted but to a far far lesser extent). Can't see a pitcher being much of a bowler either with their top heavy frames.

I'd probably say if the sports did a crossover the baseball team would be far more woeful at cricket than the cricketers at baseball. Almost purely because cricket is such a hard game to adapt to while baseball is ironically for a game played between so few nations a tad more universal.

I think you are severely underestimating the sheer athleticism of MLB players.

 

[Athlai]

I think you are severely underestimating the sheer athleticism of MLB players.

Reckon they'd struggle with the techniques of batting and bowling I'm a baseball fan and know how athletic they are (bloody steroid induced titans).

 

[Athlai]

Also I think its worth noting that I highly doubt cricket bowlers in a crossover match would be the first choice pitchers. Reckon we'd be more likely to see Clarke pitch than a Hauritz.

 

[_Ed_]

I think you are severely underestimating the sheer athleticism of MLB players.

Not all MLB players have that amazing athleticism, though - I think you see a lot more really heavily built/slightly overweight guys in baseball than in cricket, and it doesn't seem to be a setback to them. Look at Prince Fielder, for example.

I accept that cricket has Ryder, and there was Inzi, etc, but there just seems to be more people of that build in baseball.

 

[Athlai]

Factoring in the different types of endurance of the games would also be interesting. Baseball has a very very very long season but for the most part its an anaerobic excercise, cricket is similar in a way but the Test format of the game certainly promotes more aerobic excercise. I think a cricketer would adapt to a baseball matches 2 1/2 hours of irregular sprint/throw/hit/diving excercises more than a baseballer would adapt to a Test matches 5 days of these activities.

Cricket is just the craziest friggin' sport in the world IMO.

 

[Jayzamann]

Completely disagree. The skillsets are different enough that I don't think the same people would succeed. Throwing a baseball is not the same as bowling a cricket ball. A 90mph fast bowler in cricket won't be an ace pitcher in baseball, and vice versa.

Same thing with batsmen, while a few could do well, the power and hand eye coordination in baseball is immense, and different from the skillset that most cricket batsmen have. Yes, some people would do well, but aside from generally being more athletic than the normal population, I don't see a particular advantage, except in fielding.

I suppose there is nothing to test this theory beyond Jehan Mubarak, and whether he would have taken up baseball had he remained in the United States.

There's Australians in the MLB, though?

 

[Top_Cat]

Factoring in the different types of endurance of the games would also be interesting. Baseball has a very very very long season but for the most part its an anaerobic excercise, cricket is similar in a way but the Test format of the game certainly promotes more aerobic excercise. I think a cricketer would adapt to a baseball matches 2 1/2 hours of irregular sprint/throw/hit/diving excercises more than a baseballer would adapt to a Test matches 5 days of these activities.

Cricket is just the craziest friggin' sport in the world IMO.

That misrepresents a typical baseball day and night a bit. 2 1/2 hrs for one game, maybe, but MLB guys play plenty of double-headers, sometimes 4 games in two days. The endurance required is pretty immense.

 

[stephen]

Can we go back to the more entertaining discussion of how utterly dire that Fox sports video was?

It was so much fun reading everyone rubbish it.

 

[NasserFan207]

The biggest problem for a cricketer switching to MLB is even IF they made the grade, I find it impossible to believe they could adapt to the absurd scheduling. There really is nothing like it anywhere.

To put things in perspective, hardcore baseball fans pretty much put their real lives on hold during the season.

 

[vcs]

Surprising lack of disdain and condescension for baseball in this thread, TBH.

 

[slippyslip]

That misrepresents a typical baseball day and night a bit. 2 1/2 hrs for one game, maybe, but MLB guys play plenty of double-headers, sometimes 4 games in two days. The endurance required is pretty immense.

Rumour has it cricket players sometimes play 5 days in a row.

 

[andyc]

Rumour has it cricket players sometimes play 5 days in a row.

TBF though, for a decent portion of those 5 days, a player will be putting his feet up in the dressing room.

 

[marc71178]

But in all honesty, how involved is an out-fielder in baseball?

The guys who have most effort, the pitchers, barely play with so many rotations going on.

 

[DingDong]

But in all honesty, how involved is an out-fielder in baseball?

The guys who have most effort, the pitchers, barely play with so many rotations going on.

lucky to get 20 hits to the outfield in a game

 

[slowfinger]

I think the only real skill in baseball is pitching (ish) and timing and power for a batsmen, especially with these new mits and highly padded baseballs, you don't have to be a star to catch a ball.