Anything you can do, I can do better?
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is the only player to be picked in the first round of the Major League Baseball and NFL drafts, but there’s still time for Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson to prove himself on the diamond.
The 2019 NFL Most Valuable Player retweeted a video Tuesday of Tennessee Titans Pro Bowl wide receiver A.J. Brown — a 2016 draft pick of the San Diego Padres — taking swings in a batting cage while jokingly asking the Orioles for a tryout.
“Give me 2weekz,” Jackson wrote while tagging the Orioles’ official account.
The Orioles took notice, replying to Jackson with a digitally altered picture of the Ravens’ star on the body of former two-sport star Bo Jackson, the only player to be named an All-Star in both football and baseball.
Jackson is no stranger to Camden Yards. In July 2019, before the start of his MVP season, Jackson threw the ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Washington Nationals while wearing a No. 8 Orioles jersey — the same number worn by Baltimore legend Cal Ripken Jr. At the time, manager Brandon Hyde said the Orioles could use Jackson up the middle because “he can make a play.”
“I’m throwing out my pitch, giving it a little try, show them a little something, and we’ll go from there,” Jackson said.
Of course, Jackson might have much longer than two weeks to prepare for spring training. While pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Sarasota, Florida, later this month, the owners’ lockout of the players while they negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement makes an on-time start to the season feel more doubtful each passing day.