Actions

Fay: Could Billy Hamilton be an Olympic sprinter?

Fay: Could Billy Hamilton be an Olympic sprinter?
Posted at 12:54 AM, Aug 16, 2016
and last updated 2016-08-16 11:55:30-04

CINCINNATI -- With Olympic track in full swing, perhaps you’re curious about how Billy Hamilton, the fastest man in baseball, would do against the fastest men in the world.

So is he.

That is not to say Hamilton thinks he could run with Usain Bolt for 100 meters. But Hamilton would like to know what he could do if track were his livelihood instead of baseball.

“Sometimes I want to time myself and see what I would be compared to some of these guys," Hamilton said. “They’re on another level with running than I am, with all the technique and the work they put in with learning how to run.

“I go out there and run, run wild," he said. "I don’t have a technique."

But Statcast, which is run by Major League Baseball, confirms Hamilton is the fastest man in baseball. Statcast “collects data using a series of high-resolution optical cameras along with radar equipment. The technology precisely tracks the location and movements of the ball and every player on the field, resulting in an unparalleled amount of information covering everything from the pitcher to the batter to baserunners and defensive players."

Statcast, for instance, had Hamilton reaching 21.2 mph on a steal of second this year. Bolt reached 27.7 mph in the 100-meter race at the World Championships in 2009.

That is, of course, a huge difference. But it’s the ultimate apples-and- oranges comparison. Bolt hit top speed between 60 and 80 meters. Hamilton had a 11.9-foot lead when he hit 21.2, so he hit that speed in only about 23 meters.

Hamilton knows he’d have to train to get into the same class as Olympic sprinters.

"These guy are ridiculously fast," Hamilton said.

Hamilton is a Bolt fan.

"The way he runs is effortless," Hamilton said. “You see those other guys running. They’re all into it. Then Bolt is just, like, cruising. His start isn’t good, but his legs are so long."

Reds strength and conditioning coach Sean Marohn thinks Hamilton could step on a track right now and run a 4.3-second 40-yard dash and drop that time to 4.2 with training.

But that would not make him a world-class sprinter.

"His natural speed is so good," Marohn said. “His first-step quickness and ability to explode at the start are so good. But you really can’t judge. When you get to Olympic speed, they are so good at what they do."

Hamilton has never run track, despite some urging from a track coach.

“In high school, I was so focused into baseball,” Hamilton said. "(The track coach) really didn’t have a chance. There was one time in the state championship -- my track team, they won everything -- he asked me to race. I was like, ‘I haven’t run all year long. It wouldn’t be right for one of these guys who have been running all year long not to get to run in the state championship. I can’t do those guys like that.’”

The old saying is, 'you can’t teach speed.' Hamilton has that. He’d have to learn how to use it.

“He’s very raw in what he does and obviously very talented,” Mahorn said. “But when you get into track and field, they spend I don’t know how many hours on just arm swing, foot position, knee elevation. Everything is timing from the time they start to the time they get to full stride to the time they finish, depending on what their event is. It’s so efficient on what they do.

"Everything they do is methodical. They spend hundreds of hours for tenths of a second. Does Billy have that ability to be Olympic caliber? Obviously watching him on a baseball field, it’s unmatched. Once you get to the Olympic caliber, it’s hard to judge because there’s so much training involved in the running form itself. Him cleaning stuff up, I imagine he could be pretty fast."

Hamilton has never been timed at any distance.

“Before I got timed, I’d like to work on technique," he said. “I’d run before I got the right technique and then run it after I got the right technique. Just to see, the big difference. I know for a fact there’s a big difference.

“The longest I could run is the 100. I’m not even liking that. I’m a short-distance guy. The 100 is a long way. It looks like it’s short because they’re so fast. But if you go out there, it’s a long way."

If he raced Bolt, he thinks the shorter the better.

“It would have to be like a 40," he said. “His takeoff isn’t that good. Once he gets going, he can roll. It’s amazing to watch that stuff. It’s fun to watch those guys."