There are lots of "What if?" questions in baseball history. As sports fans we can talk and write about a certain topic, game or play for years after it happened (or didn't happen). This is my personal Top 10 Biggest "What Ifs?" in MLB History. There are several "What if" lists out there, I just didn't want to add my commentary on other lists so I came up with a relatively fresh one.
10. What if Sidd Finch really existed?
Ok, let me state that I'm having a little fun with this first one.
Odds are that if you are not in your 40s, you never heard of "The Curious Case of Sidd Finch". Written by George Plimpton and first published by Sports Illustrated, on April 1st (April Fool's Day) in 1985 - it was a hoax that engulfed the sports world for a short time and the myth still lingers in some circles to this day.
Sidd Finch was a pitcher. He was raised in an English orphanage, learned yoga in Tibet, could throw a fastball 168 miles per hour and was a figment of Plimpton's imagination that some believed to be true.
Finch's oddities were endless. He wore only one shoe while pitching - a heavy hiker's boot. And was still deciding to pursue baseball as a career or play the French Horn professionally.
Sidd Finch made appearances for the Mets during Spring Training in 1985, he gained lots of media attention until April 15th, when he was revealed to be a hoax.
But what if he were real? Sidd Finch would go down in the annals of history as the greatest pitcher of all-time. The "Cy Young" would be renamed the "Sidd Finch", and young pitchers would stop wearing two shoes.
Aroldis Chapman once threw a fastball clocked at 105 MPH, 63 miles an hour slower than Finch. Nolan Ryan's 5,714 strikeout record would be beat. Instead of a no-hitter being a headline, if someone got a hit off Finch - that would have been the headline.
9. What if John Elway chose baseball?
John Elway, the Colts, the Yankees and the 1983 NFL Draft was a seemingly never-ending saga. It was chronicled in ESPN's 30 for 30 film "Elway to Marino". There are several "what if" scenarios stemming from that year's Draft, but I'm going to focus on one: what if John Elway chose to play baseball for the New York Yankees and not football.
Leading up to the 1983 NFL Draft, John Elway made it clear that he did not want to play for the Baltimore Colts, who owned the first pick. Well, the Colts picked Elway regardless and drama ensued.
John Elway was drafted by the Yankees in the second round of the 1981 MLB Draft, 52nd overall, six spots ahead of future Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn.
During his senior year at Stanford, Elway hit .361 with 9 Homers and 50 RBI in 49 games. After being drafted by the Yanks, he played for their short-season affiliate Oneonta Yankees in 1982. George Steinbrenner said that John Elway was going to be the New York Yankees starting right fielder by 1985. But Elway's passion was for football.
Eventually the Colts worked out a trade with the Broncos and Elway left baseball behind. But what if he hadn't? The Yankees of the late 80s and 90s might have looked far different.
Don Mattingly might have put up even better numbers. The Yankees might have won multiple World Series in the 1980s and early 90s. Derek Jeter and the "Core Four" might not have happened, being traded as prospects because of an already potent line-up.
Also, what about the Broncos? Forget their back-to-back Super Bowl victories in 1998 and 1999. Would they have struggled mightily in the 80s and 90s? Who knows.
8. What if there never was a DH rule?
On January 11, 1973, the 24 MLB owners voted to allow the American League to use a designated hitter in place of the pitcher batting. The rationale behind choosing the AL over the NL, was that the American League was lagging behind the National League in both scoring and attendance.
But what if it never happened? Great hitters like David Ortiz and Edgar Martinez would have still played somewhere. Afterall, offense is always put first ahead of defense. But lesser hitters who were either too old, didn't have a "true" position or were just inadequate at fielding, likely would have found themselves out of the league eventually or have to settle for roles as back-ups or bench players.
On the flip-side, if there never was a DH, pitching in the AL would have been much different in the last 40+ years.
From 1901-1972, the AL's average ERA was 3.69, not too far off from the NL's 3.58.
Introduce the designated hitter.. from 1973-1996, the AL's ERA jumped to 4.09 - compared to the NL's 3.74. During the "Steroid Era" and to more recent times, 1997-2013, the difference wasn't as extreme but it was still there. The AL posted a 4.45, the NL 4.23.
It might not sound like a lot, but even a 0.10 difference in ERA can equate to hundreds of runs spread throughout the league over a season.
7. What if the Mets had a dynasty in the 1970s?
The New York Mets, the "Miracle Mets", won the World Series in 1969. They would go on to win the National League pennant in 1973, but lose to the Oakland Athletics in seven games in the World Series. The Mets wouldn't make the playoffs for another 13 years.
It starts at the 1966 MLB Draft, the Mets hold the first overall pick and select Steve Chilcott, a catcher, who is one of only two players picked #1 overall and never make the major leagues. The #2 overall pick belonged to the Athletics and they picked some guy named Reggie Jackson. "Mr. October" would go on to hit 563 home runs and become a first ballot Hall of Famer. Chilcott fell out of baseball, eventually becoming a fireman and contractor.
In 1971, the Mets traded a 24-year-old pitcher to the Angels. This pitcher had a sub-.500 career record. Only 29 career wins and 493 career strikeouts. But this pitcher was Nolan Ryan - he would go on and collect another 295 more wins and 5,221 more strikeouts.
On June 15, 1977, a day that lives in infamy among Mets fans, Tom Seaver was traded to the Cincinnati Reds. Known as "The Franchise", and dubbed the "Midnight Massacre", the trade broke a lot of Mets fans hearts. Even though Seaver had won 189 games up to that point in his career, he was still in his prime. "Tom Terrific" would win 21 games in 1977, and finish his career with 311 wins.
What if the Mets of the 1970s had a line-up with the powerful Reggie Jackson? What if their rotation was led by aces Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver for the entire decade? If those things happened, the Mets of the 1970s probably would have been to more than one World Series, possibly creating a dynasty with multiple World Series titles.
6. What if George Steinbrenner bought the Cleveland Indians?
Known as "The Boss", George Steinbrenner became the owner of the New York Yankees in 1973, when he and a group of investors purchased the franchise for $8.8 million. During his reign, the Yankees would win 10 American League pennants and 7 World Series until his death in 2010.
But just 13 months before buying the Yankees, Steinbrenner had a deal to buy his hometown Cleveland Indians. A handshake deal was in place to buy the Tribe for $8.6 million. A news conference was scheduled, but at the last minute the Indians owner's father called Steinbrenner and killed the deal. The price jumped from $8.8M to $10M. The deal was dead.
The Indians didn't make the post season in the 1970s or 1980s. They haven't won a Word Series since 1948. But if Steinbrenner's deal went through, his big personality and deep pockets might have changed the landscape of Sports in Cleveland forever.
5. What if it wasn't 90 feet to first base?
I got this one from it being mentioned in the "First Inning" of Ken Burns' epic "Baseball" documentary. In the film, the dimensions of the baseball diamond were brought into question. No one seemed to really know where or how the distance from home plate to first base originated. If it was just a guess, a pick, then it was a pick from God - the film expressed.
Think of all the close plays. All of the "bang-bang" plays. If it were 92 feet, guys would be thrown-out more frequently. There would be no such thing as an "infield hit" anymore, batting averages would plummet.
If it were 88 feet, there would probably be more "Baltimore Chops" and bunting for hits. Perhaps getting 200 hits in a season wouldn't be as big of an accomplishment.
Either way, if it wasn't 90 feet the game would be much different, runs scored and both batting and pitching statistics would be altered significantly.
4. What if there wasn't a strike in 1994?
Multiple "what ifs" could arrive if there wasn't a work stoppage in 1994, but I'm going to focus on the Montreal Expos.
In 1994, the Expos were the best team in baseball. At the time of the strike, they had a 74-40 record. That year they had five All-Stars, plus Larry Walker and Pedro Martinez who weren't selected. They had a young Cliff Floyd, John Wetteland and others. They had an ample amount of talent. In two years Vladimir Guerrero would also debut.
No awards were given. No titles or championships earned in 1994 for their 1st place, strike-shortened season. The Expos only made the playoffs once, in 1981. They were destined for greatness in the 90s but it wasn't to be.
After the years following the strike, the 1994 roster members were signed away or traded off. In 2004, the Montreal Expos folded and became the Washington Nationals. But what if there wasn't a MLB strike in 1994?
The Expos could have been a winning team in the late-90s. Perhaps attendance wouldn't have been an issue and the team would have stayed in Montreal. If that did happen, would we have the Nats today? Would Bryce Harper be playing north of the border, studying French?
3. What if Roberto Clemente was a Dodger?
On February 19, 1954, the Brooklyn Dodgers signed Roberto Clemente as a free agent from Puerto Rico. The Pirates General Manager Branch Rickey, formerly of the Dodgers, had scouted Clemente but was unable to sign him.
The Pirates had the worst record in baseball in 1953, giving them the first pick in the 1954 Rule 5 draft. After a season in the minors, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Clemente with the first pick in the Rule 5 Draft on November 22, 1954. He debuted for the Bucs on April 17, 1955 and never looked back.
What if the Dodgers had called-up or protected Clemente? Image Clemente playing with Jackie Robinson. Imagine the thump Clemente would have added to the Dodgers line-up, giving Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale even more run support.
During Roberto Clemente's career (1955-1972), both the Pirates and Dodgers were successful. The Pirates won the World Series in 1960 and 1971. The Dodgers won championships in 1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965.
Removing Clemente from the Pirates would have obviously hurt them and their two championships. Putting Clemente in Dodger blue would have made those late-50s and 60s Dodger teams ridiculously good. But the wealth spread out, each team had their stars.
Roberto Clemente, his 3,000 hits, 15 All-Star appearances, 12 gold gloves, 4 batting titles and MVP award were all accumulated in Pittsburgh.
2. What if Babe Ruth had continued pitching?
Most of the "what if" lists that feature Babe Ruth are about him staying with the Red Sox, never being sold to the Yankees. But I'm taking a different approach.
What if Ruth had stayed on the mound? Never becoming the "Sultan of Swat"? Over six seasons with Boston, Ruth had a 89-46 pitching record and a 2.19 ERA. Babe Ruth was on his way to the Hall of Fame as a pitcher.
If Babe Ruth never switched to being a full-time position player, the 1920s wouldn't have had a clear-cut "Home Run King". The argument could have been made for Rogers Hornsby, Hack Wilson or Lou Gehrig.
Babe Ruth pitched at the end of the "Dead Ball era", he actually helped end it by hitting 29 Homers in 1919. Pitching stats were some-what inflated during that era, but Ruth still compared well to other pitching legends of the time.
1916:
Babe Ruth 23-12, 1.75 ERA
Walter Johnson 25-20, 1.90 ERA
1917:
Babe Ruth 24-13, 2.01 ERA
Walter Johnson 23-16, 2.21 ERA
Let that sink in for a moment. The greatest home run hitter of all-time, compared to one of the greatest pitchers of all-time. Using Baseball-Reference.com's adjusted 162 game average over their career, Babe Ruth and Walter Johnson would look like this:
Babe Ruth: 21-10, 2.28 ERA
Walter Johnson: 19-13, 2.17 ERA
Babe Ruth would have been a Hall of Fame pitcher, he just became the most iconic hitter ever.
1. What if MLB had integrated earlier?
On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier. Aside from a few players in the 1880s, playing anywhere from a single game to a few years, MLB had no black players from 1889 until 1947.
African American players were forced to play in the "Negro Leagues". Today 18 Negro League players are enshrined in Cooperstown. Some of the best players of the 1920s, 30s and 40s never played in a "Major League" game.
Josh Gibson was the greatest Negro League hitter. He died at age 35, just three months before Jackie Robinson debuted for the Dodgers. It is estimated that over 17 seasons, Gibson averaged .354 and hit 962 home runs. It would have been something to see Josh Gibson challenging Babe Ruth for the Home Run title every season.
The greatest Negro League pitcher was Satchel Paige. Accurate statistics are not available for many Negro Leaguers. Paige is said to have pitched 28 days in a month once and won 104 out of 105 starts in a year.
After two decades in the Negro Leagues, Satchel Paige finally made his MLB debut in 1948 at the age of 41. He went 6-1 with a 2.48 ERA in his "rookie" season. At the age of 59, he returned to the Bigs for one game in 1965. He pitched three innings, not allowing a walk or run and only giving up a single hit - again, at age 59!
Joe Dimaggio said Satchel Paige was the fastest and best pitcher he ever faced. It would have been awesome to see Paige dominant the Majors in the 1930s.
What if Major League Baseball had integrated earlier? We would have seen the best go up against the best. It would have truly been a "major league".
