This story was excerpted from Matthew Leach’s Twins Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
When you think of two-sport stars, maybe you think of a quarterback-slash-pitcher. Maybe a track star who plays the outfield. But offensive tackle and pitcher?
Meet Riley Quick.
The Twins’ second pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, No. 36 overall, Quick took an unusual path to his place as a star member of the University of Alabama’s rotation and a top prospect in the 2025 Draft. He was a big-time recruit as a tackle out of Hewitt-Trussville High School in Alabama.
Quick was rated as a composite four-star prospect as a lineman, a Top 250 player in the 2022 high school class. His list of scholarship offers included top programs like Auburn, LSU, Penn State and Tennessee.
So how is Quick now seemingly on his way to playing professional baseball? Well, sometimes these things are pretty simple.
“I think I like striking people out a little bit more,” Quick remembers thinking during the summer of 2021.
It’s not actually that simple, of course. A lot of factors played into it, and Quick had legitimate football options. But once he committed his time to baseball, there was no looking back. And for good reason -- he’s a heck of a prospect.
“I think we’re lucky he chose baseball over football, because it sounds like he could have done well in college and maybe even beyond that,” Twins scouting director Sean Johnson said.
Quick, listed at 6-foot-6 and 255 pounds, throws two fastballs, highlighted by a sinker that sits at 96-97 mph and touches 99. He also feels comfortable with a slider and a changeup, and he began developing a cutter this year.
And maybe more notably, Quick maintains his velocity. He can repeat his delivery, which is unusual for a pitcher his size. And that may be in part due to his football experience. Playing tackle at a high level requires tremendous technique, in particular strong hands, great balance, and reliable footwork. All of those things can help in pitching.
“It definitely helps out a lot, being able to have that good base,” Quick said. “It helps me be able to repeat the delivery a lot. Being good and strong that helps a lot, too.”
And then there’s the emotional side. Quick has a football demeanor on the mound. He’s aggressive and emotional, and he attributes that intensity in part to his time on the gridiron. The challenge, in fact, has been channeling the ferocity, and understanding that sometimes on the diamond, less is more.
“I kind of had to control it a little bit,” Quick said. “In football, you can be super emotional and kind of do whatever you want, and in baseball, you have to control your emotions a little bit. So, you kind of take some, leave some. But it definitely helped me out.”
But one thing that very much translates is being a teammate. When you’re playing offensive line, you have to have faith in the man beside you. And you understand that at all times, if you make a mistake, someone else pays the price.
That breeds a level of responsibility and commitment that you don’t always find in 21-year-olds.
“Playing for the guy beside you, that’s something that you get out of football,” said Jason Jackson, who was Quick’s pitching coach at Alabama. “I think you saw that with Riley. Riley was just as invested, and he was just as into the games, on the days he wasn’t pitching as on the days he was pitching. We talk about having to channel that aggressiveness, Riley needed his own personal get-back coach when he was in the dugout on days he wasn’t pitching.”
And then there’s physical toughness and overcoming adversity. Quick suffered a season-ending elbow injury early in his sophomore year, needing Tommy John surgery that cost him virtually an entire year. Jackson believes that the intensity and drive with which Quick attacked his rehabilitation came in part from his time playing football.
In short, Quick has the ability to be the best of both worlds: a pitcher with feel and smarts and a plan, and a teammate with enthusiasm, intensity and passion.
“He’s a guy that, when he takes the mound, guys are going to want to play behind him,” Jackson said. “They know when this dude goes out there ... Everyone feeds off that intensity and aggressiveness. He loves his teammates and has a relentless desire to win. One of those guys that teammates love playing behind. He’s got a huge heart and infectious personality and loves the big stage.”