Here’s a weird one for you, but not that out of the ordinary: The Los Angeles Dodgers spent their 20th-round MLB Draft pick on Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei.
Dual-sport athletes get taken all the time in drafts, and sometimes — like in the case of Kyler Murray — they switch from one to another.
But here’s the thing: Uiagalelei hasn’t played baseball since high school. So why do that?
Well, what if the whole professional football thing doesn’t work out for him? Uiagalelei transferred to Oregon State because he didn’t get the starting job at Clemson, so that might signal something. But here’s another clue from the Los Angeles Times:
While he is a graduate student with two seasons of college eligibility remaining, and is projected to be the Beavers’ starter this fall, his prospects of playing in the NFL have dimmed.
Against that backdrop, the Dodgers felt comfortable with their low-risk Uiagalelei gamble; taking a “wait and see” approach, as multiple people with knowledge of the pick described it, in hopes the quarterback might one day choose to return to the diamond.
Dude apparently threw in the mid-90s, so by using a last-round pick, the hope is if he doesn’t end up in the NFL, Los Angeles could have a diamond-in-the-rough pitcher.
Smart!
