Michael Jordan once ‘broke the law’ after he bought his Birmingham Barons teammates a $350,000 gift during his time with the baseball team.
Six-time NBA championship winner Jordan, 62, is best known for his time at the Chicago Bulls between 1984 and 1998.
The New Yorker is widely considered to be the greatest basketball player to have graced the NBA, although LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kobe Bryant are also in the GOAT conversation.
Still, the 62-year-old even switched sports back in 1994 when he signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox before turning out for the Birmingham Barons, the side’s Double-A affiliate.
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In brief, the Barons served as a development team that fed the better-known Major League Baseball outfit, the White Sox.
Jordan’s switch was helped by Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner of the Chicago Bulls, who paid the NBA icon his Bulls salary while allowing him to pursue his lifelong dream of playing baseball following the passing of his father, James.
During his one full season with the team, Jordan played in 127 games as an outfielder before his return to basketball the following year.
He contributed with a batting average of .202, three home runs, and 51 runs batted in.
But away from the field, Jordan also made his mark by buying a $350,000 bus for his teammates so they could travel to matches more comfortably.
As reported by Reading Eagle at the time, with the piece relayed by BR, Jordan’s purchase had a number of impressive features, including 35 seats, six televisions, a VCR, and a lounge at the rear of the vehicle.
Jordan even supposedly drove the 45-foot-long coach on a highway despite being unlikely to have had the appropriate licenses.
During an interview with Sports Rush in 2022, Barons broadcaster Curt Bloom recalled the incident and confirmed that Jordan did jump in the driver’s seat and take the wheel.
"For a couple miles on an open highway, completely open highway, he actually jumped in the driver’s seat and was driving," Bloom said.
“We made the switch, probably going 70mph, and our bus driver got up, and Michael sat there and turned it a few times and went straight. I certainly hope that doesn’t get anybody in trouble. Department of Transportation, we’re sorry, and the statute of limitations has passed.”
He was then asked why Jordan did this, to which he replied: “Because he can, and it made a funny story.”
Topics: Michael Jordan, NBA, Chicago Bulls, Baseball
Luke Davies