The Indianapolis Star has dug up a wonderful little anecdote about Larry Bird that adds another layer to his folk hero onion — his baseball career.
There’s a special allure when it comes to the two-sport athlete, and it’s not exactly surprising that a player with the legendary skills, coordination and competitiveness of Bird would be good at more than one sport. But sadly, he wasn’t exactly a two-sport star, and his baseball career amounted to one publicity stunt for a doubleheader at Bird’s college, Indiana State University.
The whole piece is a fun read, but here’s the good stuff:
- Bird essentially suited up on a dare by ISU’s head baseball coach.
- He only came to bat twice, striking out on three pitches in his first at-bat.
- In his second at-bat, Bird lined a single up the middle that drove in what would prove to be the winning runs.
- Playing first base, Bird collided with the catcher on a pop-up and remained motionless on the ground while every single basketball fan at the park held their breath. (He was fine.)
Larry’s memory of that play from the article is priceless:
“All the time I’d been playing basketball, I’ve never been knocked out,” Bird once said. “One baseball game and I get it. I was really hurt. So, end of career — one for two, .500 average, two RBI. I figured I couldn’t do much better than that.”
Enjoy the dip in obscure sports history in full here.
(Via Indianapolis Star)
