DENVER — Russell Wilson figured he would play professionally in downtown Denver. He just thought it would be at Coors Field. The Broncos quarterback loved baseball growing up. It was a favorite sport.
When the Rockies drafted him in the third round in 2010 after his junior year at North Carolina State, Wilson was determined to give them 1,500 minor league at-bats. He projected as a potential big leaguer at second base because of his slick defense and strong arm, but needed more reps in the batter's box.
Then his career took a U-turn. The Wolfpack turned their back on Wilson the football player, and Wilson found a home at Wisconsin as a graduate transfer. A Rose Bowl berth later that boosted his football stock, Wilson's baseball career faded after hitting .229 in 93 combined games at short-season Tri-City and Class-A Asheville.
However, the fascination with two-sport stars like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders remains. What could have been for Wilson?
On his latest episode of "Peyton's Places" on ESPN+, former Broncos Hall of Famer Peyton Manning discussed the issue with Wilson. The two hung out together last summer, looking at Wilson's college and minor league archives video, before taking a lively round of batting practice at Coors Field.
"I hit about seven or eight home runs," Wilson told Denver7 this week, confirming the video of the session that featured a sweet right-handed swing with some launch angle. "It was a lot of fun."
For Wilson, anyway. Peyton featured more dry wit than hits, taking a ribbing from Wilson and Rockies legend and special assistant Vinny Castilla. A source also revealed that John Elway will make an appearance in the episode. He was a two-sport star with the Yankees projecting him as the starting right fielder and core player along with Don Mattingly.
The episode drops on Sunday on ESPN+.
