First off, Rick, regarding my Randy Johnson/Babe Ruth analogy, I confess I went back well beyond the 50 years in the thread title.
Regardless, while Randy Johnson would have been paid a comfortably upper-middle-class income for the time, he would NOT have been rich until the free agency era. That has a LOT of repercussions.
He would not have had an air-conditioned weight room in the clubhouse…or any weight room at all- he might well have been FINED for trying to lift weights, since everyone “knew” until fairly recently that weightlifting would make you “muscle-bound.”
He wouldn’t have had a personal trainer. SInce travel was by train, he wouldn’t have had time to go for a jog or to spend a few hours in the hotel fitness center (good luck finding one of those in the distant past) while he waited for a game.
I admit I’ve never liked Johnson, but I don’t mean to pick on him. ANY modern ballplayer with any kind of fitness regimen would have had an equally tough time.
And in other sports, “real” off-season jobs were a simple reality. Until the late 60’s, an NFL season was only 12 games. From mid-December until July, there was no football, and unless you were a superstar with a hefty bonus check, you had to sell cars or insurance in the off-season. Hence, if Orlando Pace stepped in a time machine and got out in 1962, he’d be an unstoppable force as a lineman for one season. After that, he’d start to lose the huge edge that current training and fitness practices has given him. After 6 months selling insurance, he’d be unlikely to show up at training camp the same behemoth he is now.
To use a crude analogy, one company of latter day U.S. Marines with the right equipment could step into a time machine and annihilate any of ancient Rome’s legions… but they’d be in trouble once their 21st century ammo began to run out, and they’d be screwed if their 21st century motor vehicles began to run down or break down. EVENTUALLY, they’d have to fight on the legions’ terms. And while I’m second to no one in my admiration of the Marines, it’s not obvious they’d remain dominant forever.
This is all a pretty silly speculation, of course, because there are no time machines, and athletics evolve gradually.
Think of this: baseball changed drastically between 1907 (dead ball era) and 1927, but somehow Ty Cobb managed to hit over .350 in both years.
Baseball in 1957 was vastly different from what it had been in 1943 (when there were no black players, and even the best white players were overseas), but somehow, Stan Musial managed to lead the NL in batting both years.
Baseball changed drastically between 1969 and 1990, but somehow, Nolan Ryan managed to strike people out in both seasons.
So, while there’s some fun in playing “what if” games, the reality is, games evolve, and the players adapt. THat’s why, while Curt Schjilling is right to say Babe Ruth could never get his heavy bat around on a Randy Johnson fastball, the reality is, the Babe WOULDN’T have tried to do so. Over time, he’d have adjusted and adapted. Maybe he’d have worked out and trained better. Maybe he’d have spent more time on batting practice. Regardless, over time, he’d have upped his game to meet the improved competition.
That’s just what professionals do, in any sport.
