Quote:
Originally Posted by ctownboy
kcohen,
"In the Rizzuto v Conception debate, I find the contention that the latter played against superior competition to be highly questionable."
Really? I will ask you then, who do you think was a better Short Stop, Phil Rizzuto or Ernie Banks?
Most people would say Banks.
David
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First, I find the Rizzuto v. Banks question to be irrelevant to the question of whether Conception faced superior competition. The contention that he did appears to be based primarily if not solely on the color line. It is obvious that within the context of pre-1950 MLB, the general level of competition would have been raised with the inclusion of players like Josh Gibson and Satchell Paiges.
However, let's look at Rizzuto's time as opposed to Conception's. In Scooter's, there was not the watering down of expansion as there were only 16 teams. There were only three major pro sports, baseball, boxing, and horse racing. Therefore, a much greater percentage of the US athletic talent was channeled into baseball. In Conception's time, so many top athletes had gone into baseball and basketball.
To contend that the level competition in Rizzuto's time was inferior solely because of the color line is simplistic. It takes into consideration one element among several that are needed if one is to validly compare the two eras.