Hypothetical Question, could Ruth hit modern pitching

[todeen]

I hate these debates. It completely devalues intelligence of human beings. It devalues pure talent. It devalues competitive drive. We are talking about the .00001 of humans who have the triple combo of talent, intelligence, and drive to rise to the top to play MLB. Of course Babe Ruth could play today. He would have coaches and trainers who would optimize his swing. He could be Miguel Cabrera. He could be Adam Dunn. Or he could have been Barry Bonds - the most feared hitter of my lifetime. And Mike Trout could certainly play in 1920. Would some of the other role players die out in the transitions? Yes, sure, because their skills would not be valued under different conditions. But others would thrive under different conditions and different opportunities as they see their skills become more valued. That's just the way it is. We can't foresee how every player transitions. But the stars are most likely to remain stars because they have that special something that separates them as a generational talent.

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[glchen]

I think this same argument could be made for any hitter who has not played in the last 30+ years. I doubt hitters like Mantle, Aaron or Mays would have the same level of success in the modern era either.

I would see Ruth similar to an upgraded Kyle Schwarber. I would think he could still adjust to the pitching, but he would dominate like he did in his era. He would probably be something like a .260 hitter averaging around 40 home runs a year.