Professional two-sport athletes are pretty much a thing of the past, but Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes would be near the top of the list of athletes who could pull it off.
Mahomes is currently featured on the cover of Time Magazine as he was named one of the 100 most influential people of 2024. One of the topics he discussed with Time was his interest in pursuing a two-sport career. Here's what Mahomes had to say.
"I've talked to the [Kansas City] Royals," Mahomes said. "And if I can go out to a spring training, I'm not opposed to that. I'll get it approved by the Chiefs and everything like that. But maybe one of these years I'll go out there and see what I've got. See if I can still hit the ball or pitch or whatever that is. Maybe not in the game but I can at least practice with them."
Baseball was Mahomes' first love, playing from a young age all the way through his early collegiate days at Texas Tech before giving it up to focus on football in his junior year. His father Pat Mahomes Sr. played for several MLB teams as a pitcher from 1992-2003.
Patrick Mahomes is a minority-owner of the Royals, which would make it difficult him from being able to participate in any official games. The MLB has a policy against players having any ownership of a franchise, but there is one exception - receiving special permission from the Commissioner.
It's a fun storyline to think about, but a lot would have to happen in order for it all to come to fruition. First things first, Mahomes would have to be good enough to warrant playing in a game. Secondly, not only would he have to get permission from MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred, but he would also have to be given permission from the Chiefs.
While the Chiefs would likely be hard pressed to sign off, Manfred's decision would be very interesting. Mahomes playing in the MLB would certainly be great for business, including television ratings, ticket sales as well as jersey and merchandise sales. On the other hand, however, Manfred would likely get a major pushback from the rest of the league.
The more likely scenario would be what Mahomes said, taking part in spring training practices. It may not quite be the same as playing in a game, but he would still have the opportunity to see if he can hit against pitchers throwing their best stuff or if he could effectively pitch against legitimate MLB hitters.
We know how much his baseball background has helped him become the best quarterback on the planet, so it is entirely possible that he could at least hang in there a bit amongst MLB pros.
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