Who says pitchers aren’t athletes? Orioles top pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez is here to argue against that theory.
What better evidence does Rodriguez need than the video he tweeted Tuesday of him kicking a 40-yard field goal — left-footed? That’s pretty darn athletic, especially coming from a 22-year-old right-hander whose fastball reaches 100 mph.
Rodriguez is no stranger to distance. It was only a few years ago he tweeted footage of himself long-tossing over an entire pond in his native Texas. The Orioles’ top pitching prospect is also ranked the sport’s No. 1 pitching prospect per MLB Pipeline, after going 6-1 with a 2.60 ERA in 18 electric starts in 2021 at Double-A Bowie.
Impressive as his gridiron feat was, Rodriguez has competition within his own system when it comes to kicking the pigskin. His batterymate and top overall prospect Adley Rutschman famously holds the state of Oregon preps record for kicking a 63-yard field goal as a high school senior in 2015. Rutschman later kicked for Oregon State University before emerging as a baseball star for the Beavers, and the top overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft.
Together, Rutschman and Rodriguez headline an Orioles system ranked as baseball’s best by MLB Pipeline. Both are eyeing MLB debuts in 2022.