Did you know that there is a current Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback that was actually drafted HIGHER than Aaron Judge. Strange now but back then, there wasn’t the least bit of controversy.
Super Bowl-winning QB Russell Wilson actually was drafted higher than Aaron Judge:
Russell Wilson Was Drafted Before Aaron Judge
Russell Wilson is on his way to a Hall of Fame career on the gridiron just like Judge is on the diamond. His ten-year career with the Seattle Seahawks produced two Super Bowl appearances and one championship. After a couple of seasons in Denver, Russ is the early starting quarterback going into training camp.
What gets forgotten is Wilson was a two-sport athlete at N.C. State, playing quarterback in football and shortstop in baseball. His infield work got enough attention to be drafted by the Colorado Rockies with the 140th pick in the 4th round in 2010.
A couple of seasons in the minors and his rights ended up with…the Yankees who still own his rights. Soon after, Russ committed to football and transferred to the University of Wisconsin.
Aaron Judge was a multi-sport athlete as well in high school. A natural athlete with imposing size, who dominated in baseball, hoops and the gridiron.
Aaron Judge was basically Bo Jackson in high school pic.twitter.com/b3loegMP0X
— BaseballHistoryNut (@nut_history) August 1, 2024
Judge was eventually drafted with the (this is why General Managers get fired!) 935th pick in the 31st round by the Oakland Athletics. Like Wilson, his rights ended up with the Yankees.
Yes…the two did play together in 2018 in a Spring Training game!
Russell Wilson did work out with the Yankees in spring training during the NFL offseason. At the time, Russ was at the top of the NFL world as one of the best quarterbacks of the time. Even though it was a publicity stunt to some, Wilson had fun with it, even calling out the MLBbros Judge and Giancarlo Stanton to catch a few passes.
"Aaron Judge I know you wanna throw some passes, let's play some ball … Stanton, I'm coming for you too"
Russell Wilson is ready to report to Yankees camp! (via @DangeRussWilson)https://t.co/JlR5FPDIeK pic.twitter.com/QR2t1CWdTa
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 22, 2018
Wilson opened a few eyes hitting six “Bro Bombs” in batting practice and even though baseball was in the rear-view mirror, Wilson shared his love for the game with ESPN…
“This (baseball) is what I’ve known my whole life,” Wilson told reporters including Cole Harvey after Monday’s practice. “Now I couldn’t just step on a basketball, but baseball. It’s like riding a bike once you get back out there for me. It’s not an easy sport, though. It’s very, very difficult.”
Russ found out the difference between batting practice and real game pitching when he pinch hit for Judge…
.@DangeRussWilson pinch hit for Aaron Judge today.
(Yes, you read that right) pic.twitter.com/N0sqTgJ7aC
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 2, 2018
Even though it’s obvious all parties went in the right direction, Wilson got a chance to try two sports at once.
But it was about fulfilling a promise to his father for Russell Wilson…
“The reason this is so special to me,” Wilson told The MMQB in a telephone interview, “is that I used to always tell my dad I always wanted to be a Yankee. I said to him, ‘Some day, Dad, I will be a Yankee.’ And so now that dream has come true—a little bit. My main, No. 1 focus is winning Super Bowls and winning football games. But the reality is that baseball has always been a major part of my life, and I couldn’t be happier to be keeping that alive with the Yankees.”
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