Russell Wilson: ‘Never say never’ to baseball

By Brent Stecker

The Texas Rangers were hoping some of Russell Wilson’s mojo would help their squad when they invited the Seahawks’ Super Bowl-winning quarterback to spring training. They may have also reminded Wilson about his love for baseball.

After participating in drills earlier in the day, Russell Wilson was in the dugout for the Rangers’ Cactus League game against Cleveland. (AP) | More photos

Wilson, a former Colorado Rockies second-base prospect who was drafted by the Rangers in the Rule 5 Draft in December, participated in drills during practice Monday and was in the dugout for Texas’ Cactus League game against Cleveland. He clearly enjoyed the experience.

“You never say never,” Wilson said in reference to returning to his pro baseball career, according to ESPNDallas.com’s Richard Durrett. “I’ve always had the dream of playing two sports. If somehow it was a miracle that it could work out, I’d consider it. At the same time, my focus is winning the championship with the Seattle Seahawks and hope to be playing for a long time.”

While the goal for the Rangers was to have Wilson give their players some motivation, Wilson himself found motivation from being around the club.

“More than anything, just the experience of being around a championship organization and a team that has done a lot of great things – how poised these guys are, how relaxed they are, how much fun they have coming to work every day,” Wilson said. “It’s the same thing we try to do with the Seattle Seahawks. It really is. It’s the same language that they use in terms of competing and playing great ball all the time and having the right mindset. It transfers over.

“For me, playing the quarterback position, you have to have amnesia. You have to be able to stay focused one pitch at a time and all those things. So for me, coming back out here feels right at home.”

Of course, fans from his other team were in full force at the Rangers’ facility.

“The 12th Man fans were unbelievable today,” Wilson said. “They’re unbelievable every day. They’re everywhere. They find a way to make something happen, so just the Seattle Seahawks fans, the 12th Man fans are out in the outfield, they’re on third-base line, first-base line, chanting ‘Seahawks’ the whole way. Hopefully the Dallas fans didn’t get too mad. It really is a special thing we have in Seattle and it was great.”

Though Wilson last played minor-league ball in 2011, Rangers manager Ron Washington saw major-league potential Monday.

“If he continued to work and get the repetition, he could probably be as good as he is a football player,” Washington said. “He surprised me for not being out on the baseball field for a while. I might have burned his legs up a little bit, but he made it through all the drills and did a fantastic job. He’s got tremendous aptitude. That’s why he is who he is. You give him something, and he knows how to apply it.”