Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray wasn’t the only football player to be drafted by a team in the MLB draft. Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson just had his name go off the board.
Patterson was drafted by the Texas Rangers with the 1,169th pick overall in the 39th round of the MLB Amateur Draft. Considering his placement in the draft, it would be unlikely Patterson will have to make such a high-profile decision to choose between baseball and football the way Murray did this week.
39 (1169): @Rangers select U Michigan 3B Shea Patterson. https://t.co/dm8BXIAdXv #MLBDraft
— MLB Draft Tracker (@MLBDraftTracker) June 6, 2018
Shea Patterson has been selected in the #MLBDraft. 🤔
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) June 6, 2018
But we know he’ll be with us this season. #GoBlue | #ProBlue https://t.co/b3lUglJKtG
Patterson has fought hard to get a chance to play quarterback for Michigan, and his future outlook appears to be more promising as a quarterback than a third baseman. Patterson has transferred from Ole Miss to Michigan, and after a bit of a tussle to get his eligibility cleared for the upcoming season, Patterson is expected to be a favorite for the starting job at quarterback for the Wolverines this fall.
It is not at all uncommon for baseball teams to draft some notable football players late in the draft, especially if they feel there is a slim chance that player will ever actually play baseball. Johnny Manziel was once drafted by the San Diego Padres, and Russell Wilson was once in the Colorado Rockies farm system before transferring to play football for Wisconsin (football has worked out well for him, by the way).
At Oklahoma, Murray has already made it clear he will be playing football for the Sooners this season despite being picked ninth overall by the Oakland A’s.
