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Y! SPORTS
Don't worry, Cleveland Browns fans, Johnny Manziel will still be your franchise quarterback for many, many years to come. Or at least longer than Colt McCoy was. But just on the outside chance he ever elected to pull a Russell Wilson and try out baseball for a year or two, the San Diego Padres made him their 28th round selection during MLB's first year player on Saturday afternoon.
And even if he doesn't intend on moving to baseball in the future, start printing those Manziel T-shirts and jerseys anyway! We smell money.
There's actually a lot of truth in that as well, but Manziel won't be the biggest throwaway pick in MLB's draft. As Yahoo's Jeff Passan noted one month ago, Manziel's baseball skill set left many wondering what could have been, and some even disappointed that he ultimately selected football to be his focus. Granted, it's difficult to argue with winning a Heisman Trophy during his freshman season at Texas A&M, or going on to become a first round selection in the NFL Draft, but that's how highly thought of he was as a baseball player in some circles.
San Diego has nothing to lose by drafting Manziel's rights, and at the very least we'll probably see him throw out another first pitch at a future game at Petco Park. Remember, he already did that once in 2013. Who knows, maybe there will even be a spring training appearance ala Wilson, or a bobblehead. All of those possibilities were likely going through the Padres' minds as they made that pick.
Sure, most fans would have preferred a player that's likely to help on the field. But baseball is also a business, and drafting Manziel is a ready-made business opportunity.
And even if he doesn't intend on moving to baseball in the future, start printing those Manziel T-shirts and jerseys anyway! We smell money.
There's actually a lot of truth in that as well, but Manziel won't be the biggest throwaway pick in MLB's draft. As Yahoo's Jeff Passan noted one month ago, Manziel's baseball skill set left many wondering what could have been, and some even disappointed that he ultimately selected football to be his focus. Granted, it's difficult to argue with winning a Heisman Trophy during his freshman season at Texas A&M, or going on to become a first round selection in the NFL Draft, but that's how highly thought of he was as a baseball player in some circles.
San Diego has nothing to lose by drafting Manziel's rights, and at the very least we'll probably see him throw out another first pitch at a future game at Petco Park. Remember, he already did that once in 2013. Who knows, maybe there will even be a spring training appearance ala Wilson, or a bobblehead. All of those possibilities were likely going through the Padres' minds as they made that pick.
Sure, most fans would have preferred a player that's likely to help on the field. But baseball is also a business, and drafting Manziel is a ready-made business opportunity.