SEATTLE: Seattle Sounders FC co-owner and Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. during an attempt to break the Guinness world record for largest soccer lesson at Pier 62 on June 15, 2025. (Photo by Soobum Im - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
Team USA's World Cup is over early. Again.
For nearly 100 years, the Americans have been also-rans at best and ne'er-do-wells most of the time. But what would be the nation's legacy on the world's greatest stage if MLB's great athletes had grown up on a soccer pitch instead of a baseball diamond?
It is reasonable to ***** ume that MLB greats Ty Cobb, Mickey Mantle, Mike Trout, Jackie Robinson and Rickey Henderson would be as revered as Pele, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Franz Beckenbauer or Diego Maradona.
BOLTON, ENGLAND: Scoring star of the Brazil team Edson Arantes Do Nascimento, commonly known as Pele, takes a turn in goal during a World Cup training session on July 11, 1966. (Photo by Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)
Team USA's World Cup is over early. Again.
For nearly 100 years, the Americans have been also-rans at best and ne'er-do-wells most of the time. But what would be the nation's legacy on the world's greatest stage if MLB's great athletes had grown up on a soccer pitch instead of a baseball diamond?
It is reasonable to ***** ume that MLB greats Ty Cobb, Mickey Mantle, Mike Trout, Jackie Robinson and Rickey Henderson would be as revered as Pele, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Franz Beckenbauer or Diego Maradona.
BOLTON, ENGLAND: Scoring star of the Brazil team Edson Arantes Do Nascimento, commonly known as Pele, takes a turn in goal during a World Cup training session on July 11, 1966. (Photo by Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)
4 months ago
