Reaching a major professional league usually requires a lifetime of commitment to one sport. A small group of athletes somehow found enough time, skill, and nerve to compete in two. Some moved between seasons, while others abandoned one career before unexpectedly succeeding in another. Their stories belong to an era when specialization was less rigid, but even then, what they accomplished was remarkably unusual.
1. Bo Jackson, Baseball and Football
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Bo Jackson did not merely appear in Major League Baseball and the NFL. He became an All-Star in baseball and a Pro Bowl running back for the Los Angeles Raiders, producing moments that still appear in highlight compilations decades later. Jackson played four NFL seasons while also building an eight-year MLB career with the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox, and California Angels. A severe hip injury ended his football career, but he later returned to the baseball diamond after undergoing surgery.
2. Deion Sanders, Baseball and Football
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For several years, Deion Sanders treated the NFL and MLB calendars as if they were parts of one unusually demanding season. He played in the 1992 World Series with the Atlanta Braves, then returned to the Atlanta Falcons once the baseball season ended. Sanders became one of football’s best cornerbacks, won two Super Bowls, and eventually entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame, all while spending nine seasons in Major League Baseball.
3. Gene Conley, Baseball and Basketball
BOSTON BASEBALL HISTORY
Few championship résumés look anything like Gene Conley’s. The 6-foot-8 pitcher helped the Milwaukee Braves win the 1957 World Series, then collected three NBA championships with the Boston Celtics. He regularly moved between baseball and basketball seasons, pitching in the majors for 11 years while playing six seasons in the NBA. He remains the only athlete to win championships in both MLB and the NBA.
4. Brian Jordan, Football and Baseball
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Brian Jordan began his professional career as a safety for the Atlanta Falcons, appearing in 36 NFL games between 1989 and 1991. Baseball eventually offered him the better long-term opportunity, and he developed into an MLB All-Star with the Atlanta Braves. Jordan spent 15 seasons in the majors, hit 184 home runs, and drove in more than 800 runs after leaving football behind.
5. Danny Ainge, Baseball and Basketball
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Before Danny Ainge became an NBA champion, executive, and familiar figure around the Boston Celtics, he was a third baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays. He reached the major leagues at 20 and appeared in 211 games before choosing basketball. The decision worked out well, as Ainge played 14 NBA seasons, earned an All-Star selection, and won two championships with Boston.
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6. Dave DeBusschere, Baseball and Basketball
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Dave DeBusschere spent part of the early 1960s pitching for the Chicago White Sox while also establishing himself with the Detroit Pistons. His baseball career lasted only 36 games, but he posted a respectable 2.90 earned run average. Basketball became his real calling, leading to eight All-Star selections, two championships with the New York Knicks, and a place in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
7. Jim Thorpe, Football and Baseball
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Jim Thorpe’s athletic career stretched across professional football, Major League Baseball, and Olympic track and field. He played six MLB seasons with teams including the New York Giants and Boston Braves, but football remained the sport he preferred. Thorpe later became the first president of the organization that evolved into the NFL, and he was included in the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s inaugural class.
8. Bud Grant, Basketball and Football
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Long before he coached the Minnesota Vikings in four Super Bowls, Bud Grant played for the Minneapolis Lakers and won NBA championships in each of his two seasons. He then switched to professional football, first joining the Philadelphia Eagles and later becoming a standout receiver in the Canadian Football League. His playing career alone would have been unusual, even without everything he later accomplished as a coach.
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9. Otto Graham, Basketball and Football
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Otto Graham won a championship with the Rochester Royals of the National Basketball League before becoming the quarterback of the Cleveland Browns. Once football took over, his teams reached the league championship game in all 10 of his professional seasons. Graham played before the modern Super Bowl era, but his run of seven championships made him one of the most successful quarterbacks of his time.
10. Ron Reed, Basketball and Baseball
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At 6-foot-6, Ron Reed looked equally comfortable on a pitcher’s mound and a basketball court. He played two NBA seasons with the Detroit Pistons before beginning a major league pitching career that lasted 19 years. Reed later became an important reliever for the Philadelphia Phillies and helped the team win the 1980 World Series.
11. Mark Hendrickson, Basketball and Baseball
AL BAT
Mark Hendrickson spent four seasons moving through the NBA before making a second professional career as a major league pitcher. His basketball stops included Philadelphia, Sacramento, New Jersey, and Cleveland. In baseball, he lasted much longer, pitching for 10 seasons and appearing in more than 300 MLB games.
12. D.J. Dozier, Football and Baseball
THE DREAM CATCHER
D.J. Dozier won a national championship at Penn State and was selected in the first round of the 1987 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. After several years as an NFL running back, he returned to baseball and reached the majors with the New York Mets in 1992. He became one of only a small number of modern athletes to appear in both MLB and the NFL.
13. Chuck Connors, Basketball and Baseball
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Before television audiences knew Chuck Connors as the star of The Rifleman, sports fans could have seen him with the Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Dodgers, or Chicago Cubs. Connors played professional basketball first, then appeared in 67 Major League Baseball games. Neither athletic career lasted especially long, but reaching both leagues gave him a résumé few Hollywood actors could match.
14. Cotton Nash, Basketball and Baseball
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Cotton Nash was a college basketball star at Kentucky before playing in the NBA and the short-lived American Basketball Association. Baseball remained another option, and he eventually appeared in the major leagues with the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins. His time at the top of each sport was brief, but he still joined the very small group that reached both MLB and major professional basketball.
15. Howie Schultz, Baseball and Basketball
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Howie Schultz’s unusual double career began in Major League Baseball, where the 6-foot-6 first baseman played more than 450 games during the 1940s. He later moved into professional basketball and won the 1949 NBA championship with the Minneapolis Lakers. Schultz then returned to baseball for one final major league season, making his career path even harder to neatly explain.
In the mood for more?
Check out 14 Sports Records That May Never Be Broken, or take a look at 15 Sports Superstitions So Bizarre That Coaches Actually Allowed Them. If you want to see more stories from professional sports, you can check out 15 Biggest Sports Rivalries of All Time.
