Wayne Douglas Gretzky is a name synonymous with ice hockey. The Canadian former professional hockey player played 20 seasons for four teams in his sensational career. Further spanning two decades. Touted as ‘The Great Man’ was a child prodigy, demonstrated exceptional skills, and stunned the world of sports. In a surprising revelation, in an interview in 2017, Gretzky shared about his favorite sport as a kid and that wasn’t hockey.

As unbelievable as it sounds, the Great Man was on the verge of embracing one of the most popular sports in the U.S. but his father stood between them. In the interview, he opened up on the truth of how he shifted his aspirations to ice hockey. Thus, giving the world a magnificent and one of the most dominant athletes of all time.

Wayne Gretzky wanted to be a baseball player

The hockey legend said, “My favorite sport, believe it or not, was baseball.” He aspired to be a Major League Baseball player. Also, he recounted memories of listening to Jack Buck on the radio. As a kid, he used to be delighted to listen to Cardinal games and fall asleep.

“The great thing about the Cardinals was, they were an hour behind. So they came at 8:30” which was the time he usually went to bed. “I wanted to be a baseball player.” In addition, he shared how much he adored the sport.

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He said he would have played baseball throughout the day. “I would have loved to have been the shortstop for the Detroit Tigers. I grew up such a big Tiger fan,” he said. And then there was a twist. Amidst all these aspirations was his dad, who kept saying, “You’re a hockey player, you know.”

Why is Wayne the Great Man?

Gretzky put his heart and soul into the sport. He practiced intensely, but wisely. His expertise in passing the puck to his teammates is renowned as unmatchable, for he didn’t simply pass it but put it to the spot where the player would go. The ease and precision with which ‘The Hall of Fame member’ played the sport was outstanding.

There are several noteworthy records he holds. He became the first player to score 50 goals in 39 games during the 1981-82 season. Few other records are most goals (894) in a season (92), most assists (1,963) in a season (163), and most career playoff goals (122) and assists (260).