I think the article is a little rash, and really kind of make sports a chauvinist thing. I would suggest that of any sport, baseball or basketball would be the least masculine of the four major sports. Hockey is very physical, and what better way to decide who the better man is than throwing the gloves off and plugging at each others jersey? Football, need I say more? Hitting as hard as you can, playing physical with a cornerback, or trying to get past a 300 pound lineman is certainly something that requires great strength and masculinity. One of the measures at the NFL combine is how many reps of 225lbs a player can do. Those numbers certainly show something about how masculine a player is.
     The cowboy designation that the media gave Nolan Ryan is not exactly something that I would classify as masculine or desirable. The media took the "cowboy image" and made it seem alot more desirable than it actually is. If I wanted a cool look with a cowboy hat, I would watch the rodeo or look at Woody from Toy Story (Joey that is for you). To me, pitching fast and throwing 100 is absolutely awesome. Overpowering a hitter and blowing them away with speed, but I would have to think that there are much better examples of masculinity in sports than Nolan Ryan. Hell of a pitcher btw.