Oregon State QB DJ Uiagalelei drafted by Dodgers
Playing one sport at an elite level is tough, but doing it in two is even more impressive.
Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei beat the odds, however.
He was selected with the 610th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Uiagalelei hasn’t played baseball since high school in 2020, but that didn’t stop LA from picking up the 6-foot-5, 240-pound quarterback as a pitcher as he had a fastball that reached 95 mph.
The signal-caller started his football career with the Clemson Tigers in 2020 and earned the starting spot the next two years before ultimately entering the transfer portal and landing with the Oregon State Beavers for his senior season.
His first two years on the gridion were relatively underwhelming for the No. 2 ranked prospect back out of high school in 2020, but his latest campaign saw him throw 2,521 yards and 22 touchdowns to only seven interceptions.
Even if nothing goes right in Uiagalelei’s football career ever again, he still will have an opportunity to be a professional athlete in MLB.
Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei warms up before the team’s Spring Football Game in April Getty Images
Then-Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei passes the ball in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Miami last season. AP
The quarterback isn’t the only football player to have been drafted by a major league team.
Shaq Thompson, a linebacker for the Carolina Panthers, was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 18th round in 2012.
The center fielder, however, had an easy decision to make in terms of what sport to pursue after going hittless in 39 at-bats with 37 strikeouts in his lone season playing baseball in the minors.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was drafted twice by MLB team’s, once straight out of high school in 2007 by the Baltimore Orioles and then again in 2010 by the Colorado Rockies.
Most recently, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray — also the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, was picked ninth overall by the Oakland A’s in 2018.
Source: New York Post
