Terry Francona: Michael Jordan Could Have Played In The Majors If...

Could Michael Jordan have ever made it to the big leagues?

His former manager Terry Francona believes so,and says that all it would have taken was Jordan having a little bit more playing experience  and reps at the plate.

Speaking with ESPN New York's The Michael Kay Show yesterday, the 2x World Series Champion manager discussed what it was like coaching basketball's GOAT during Jordan's bizarre single season with the Chicago White Sox Double-A affiliate team, the Birmingham Barons.

FRANCONA GIVES HIGH PRAISE FOR MICHAEL JORDAN

"You know I tell people this, and they don't believe me, but I think if you gave Michael another 1,000 at bats - which is essentially two more years, I think he would have found his way to the Major Leagues, I honestly believe that," Francona began.

"One, he could fly [run fast], and two, I found out quickly that if you ever told Michael ‘No,’ he was going to find a way to make the answer be, ‘Yes.’ He just has that factor - his competitiveness is just off the charts that I think he would have definitely found a way [to make it to the pro level.

That's definitely some high praise from Francona, who has spent nearly four decades in the Majors between being a player and a manager. And he knows a thing or two about adversity and building players - he was at the helm when the Red Sox came back 0-3 against the Yankees to win the 2004 World Series and snap the 86-year-old ‘Curse of the Bambino.’

But even with such an impressive resume, Francona was asked if he ever disciplined Jordan and ‘got in his face' or did he let MJ do what he wanted because it was… well, Michael Jordan.

"I don't get in too many player's faces and for him, I'd have to get on a step ladder,' Francona joked. "But with Michael he was so coachable, and it shouldn't be surprising because I don't think you can accomplish everything he did in another sport and not be intelligent and coachable and things like that. If you told him something once, he would get it done."

JORDAN PLAYED IN 1994 FOR THE WHITE SOX DOUBLE-A TEAM

To hear Terry Francona give such high praise for Jordan is kind of wild. Many sports fans forget that MJ even played baseball considering it was so random. At the time, Jordan had retired from basketball seemingly out of nowhere in order to "fulfill a lifelong dream of playing baseball." Michael had last played baseball decades earlier in middle school.

In his only baseball season, Jordan appeared in 127 games for the Barons where he finished with a .202 batting average, 88 hits, 3 home runs and 51 RBIs.

Impressive, no doubt, but it also goes to show just how unbelievable two-way players like Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson were to be able to dominate in both baseball and football. Could they dunk a basketball though and win 6 NBA Championships though? Probably not.