Michigan QB Shea Patterson signs six-year deal with Texas Rangers
Michigan QB Shea Patterson has a baseball contract before he has a football contract.
Patterson was a 39th-round pick of the Texas Rangers. According to the Dallas Morning News, Patterson signed with the Rangers on Tuesday.
Martin Perez will pitch Thursday for Round Rock…. Jax Biggers No. 9 pick has signed… 39th round pick Shea Patterson has signed a 2019 contract to play after he completes his football eligibility at Michigan
— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) July 3, 2018
No, Patterson isn’t quitting football
Take a deep breath, Michigan fans. Your quarterback savior isn’t leaving the program. According to the Detroit Free Press, Patterson’s deal is to work with the instructional staff of the Rangers when he isn’t playing football and does not have any impact to his football career.
The deal, per a source with direct knowledge of the situation, is a six-year agreement that will allow Patterson to work with the Rangers’ instructional staff when he has off time from football at Michigan.
He won’t play in any baseball games during his football career, and the agreement has no impact on his status or eligibility at Michigan. Beginning this season, Patterson will have two more years of football eligibility remaining.
Michigan was made aware of Patterson’s decision to sign and, per the source, coach Jim Harbaugh was in complete support of the move.
Patterson transferred to Michigan from Ole Miss in the offseason. He was declared immediately eligible at Michigan after Ole Miss was given a bowl ban for the upcoming season.
Patterson is the second QB to sign a baseball contract in 2018
Despite not playing baseball since high school, Patterson joins Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray as quarterbacks who have signed contracts with baseball teams this summer. But Patterson’s situation seems much more like Russell Wilson’s than Murray’s.
Murray was a first-round pick of the Oakland Athletics. His nearly $5 million contract with the A’s is guaranteed and he’ll join the team in spring training in 2019 as he focuses on baseball after a year as the Sooners’ (presumed) starting QB.
The Seattle Seahawks QB Wilson has moonlighted in professional baseball during the NFL offseason. Wilson, whose rights are now owned by the New York Yankees, even had a spring training at-bat in March.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
