The Case Against Specialization

Many coaches have been encouraging their athletes to specialize in only one sport with the idea of making them the best at their particular sport. To do so not only goes against history, but can rob young athletes of opportunities in life.

On the history side of the debate, here is a list of multi-sport athletes who defy the "One Sport Only will make you the best" proponents

Dave Winfield had a baseball career that culminated in his induction into the baseball Hall of Fame. Dave Winfield was also a multi-sport star who was drafted by three professional teams in three different sports.

Two-Time Cy Young Award winning pitcher Tom Glavine was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL an the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball.

As a high school student in Texas, Roger Clemens lettered in footbll, basketball, and baseball.

Coming out of Parkview High School, Gold Glove outfielder Jeff Francoeur of the Atlanta Braves was a first-round baseball draft pick, and a top college football prospect.

At Laney High School in Wilmington, NC, young Michael Jordan played football, basketball, and baseball.

At North Fort Myers High School in Florida, Deion Sanders was an all-State athlete in football, baseball, and basketball.

McAdory High School in Alabama was the home of a heavily-recruited football and baseball player named Bo Jackson.

These are but a few of the many examples of how the greatest athletes play multiple sports and do not specialize as youngsters.

But the greatest reason not to make young people specialize is the denial of opportunity that can result. There's not a lot of room at the top of the sports world, so if a young player wants to advance beyond high school, they'd better do as many things as possible. Not only will this keep them in playing shape year-round, but it may open a door to an opportunity that they didn't know was available.