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Originally Posted by M's_Fan
I would agree that the players may seem unskilled because the game was just so different then. Comparing a Ty Cobb to Albert Pujols, and it seems like the players today are more athletic, bigger, and skilled. However, when you compare, for example, Ty Cobb or Willie Keeler to Ichiro, there doesn't seem to be that much of a difference. In other words, you have to compare apples to apples.
Not only is the game generally different today, more importantly it is very specialized, every position and spot in the batting order has a very tight category and role. The Ty Cobbs that dominated the deadball era would be stars today, but they would likely be batting 1st or 2nd rather than 3rd or cleanup.
Likewise, some of the famous starting pitchers of the deadball era would categorized as relievers and closers if they were to play today. We could argue this all day, but I think of all around pitchers like Mathweson and Johnson as starters, and one-two pitch specialists like Mordecai Brown as closers. And personalities like Rube Waddell would be the John Rockers bullpen types of today. Its all fun to think about....
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There is no doubt that the players of today are bigger, stronger, and faster than those in past eras. Babe Ruth was considered a giant among players at the time. He would be below average size today. The biggest difference is among pitchers. Modern pitchers are 5-6 inches taller and 40-50 lbs. heavier than those in even the 1920's and 1930's.
This isn't just baseball, but any sport, and, in fact, life in general. Sports that are measurable (e.g.- Track & Field, Swimming) bear this out.
But you can olny compare players against those they played against in their day. The greatest players of their day will always be great players.
Edit: I just did a quick comparison of the 1927 Yankees and the 2009 Yankees. The average starting, position player in 1927 was 6'0", 185 lbs. In 2009 the average starter was 6'2", 209 lbs. (Babe Ruth and Hideki Matsui are about the same size.)
The average of their 5 main pitchers in 1927 was 5'11", 175 lbs. In 2009 those numbers were 6'5" and 239 lbs.