Michael Jordan is widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, but his brief attempt at professional baseball has often been used as a punchline. Jordan stepped away from the NBA to pursue baseball and struggled offensively in the minor leagues, hitting .202 for the Birmingham Barons in 1994. However, MLB legend Derek Jeterbelieves Jordan deserves far more credit for what he accomplished.
MORE: MLB awards predictions for the 2026 season Jeter says Jordan’s baseball accomplishment was underrated Birmingham Barons right fielder Michael Jordan grabs a bag of Ballpark Chew sunflower seeds in the dugout before a game against the Nashville Xpress at Greer Stadium in Nashville on April 23, 1994. Jeter recently pointed out just how unusual Jordan’s baseball journey actually was. Rather than having years of experience in organized baseball before reaching the professional level, Jordan went from playing Little League directly to Double-A baseball. “A lot of people laugh. ‘Oh, Michael was this. Michael was that,'” Jeter explained. “Michael Jordan played baseball in Little League, and then the next time he played, he’s playing in Double-A baseball.” That jump is enormous, particularly for someone who had not spent years developing as a professional baseball player. Double-A jump is no joke Birmingham Barons right fielder Michael Jordan strikes a single off Nashville Xpress pitcher Joe Norris at Greer Stadium in Nashville on April 24, 1994. Jeter explained that the progression through professional baseball typically includes rookie ball, Low-A, High-A, Double-A and Triple-A before reaching the majors. According to the Yankees legend, the biggest jump comes between A-ball and Double-A. “If you can play in Double-A baseball, you can play in the major leagues at some point,” Jeter said. Jordan ultimately hit .200, a number that is often cited as evidence of how poorly his experiment went. But Jeter believes even that number deserves context. Jordan went directly from Little League to Double-A and managed to hit .200. Jeter pointed out that even he, despite being a highly accomplished young baseball player, hit just .202 in rookie ball during his first professional season.
MORE: 4 MLB teams most likely to win the World Series, not including the Dodgers Jordan could have improved Jeter also believes Jordan’s biggest problem was simply a lack of experience. “People think because you’re great at one sport, it should translate into another. It doesn’t happen like that,” Jeter said. Rather than viewing Jordan’s baseball career as a failure, Jeter sees it as an example of how difficult professional baseball really is. He believes Jordan was much better than people give him credit for and could have continued improving if he had stayed with the sport. Jordan ultimately returned to the NBA, but Jeter’s perspective offers a different way of looking at one of the most unusual athletic experiments in sports history.
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