Phoenix, Arizona outfielder Duce Robinson might be the most talented two-sport blue-chip the MLB Draft has seen since 2018. An ultra-talented toolbox, Robinson figures to be an enigmatic player for front offices over the next eleven months.
Four years ago, the Oakland Athletics selected Kyler Murray ninth overall. A junior outfielder at the University of Oklahoma, Murray signed with Oakland for $4.9 million following the draft, but left the sport to continue his football career, eventually winning the Heisman Trophy and getting selected first overall by the Arizona Cardinals in 2019. The Athletics reportedly offered Murray in the neighborhood of $14 million to stick with baseball, but football prevailed.
Murray was the latest two-sport star forced to choose one or the other. Sure, guys like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders were able to play both, but more and more it feels as though that era in sports in behind us.
Robinson is next in line. Robinson, the no. 1 ranked tight end in the country according to Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports, is considered one of the most premium prospects at his position in the last decade. While still uncommitted, Robinson has scholarship offers from virtually every school imaginable. He’s just the third prep ever to be named an Under Armour All-American in both baseball and football joining Murray and Philadelphia Eagles Pro Bowl wideout AJ Brown.
On the diamond, Robinson is a toolshed. At 6-foot-6, 230-pounds, the prodigious thumper has massive raw power with more bat speed coming. He’s already shown an affinity for finding the barrel, tagging talented high school pitchers at showcases this summer for ringing extra-base hits. Robinson has turned around low-90s heat and stung high-spin breakers this summer, catching the attention of scouts and executive alike. But it doesn’t end there. Robinson has above average speed underway, and a very good first step out of the box. He figures to profile into right field at the next level where the Aaron Judge comparisons will follow.
But Robinson’s present tools might be scratching the surface. He’s dedicated immense time to the gridiron and scouts wonder how much more is in there were he to focus exclusively on baseball. He operates like the violent receiver he is on the football field; head down, tight strides and weight forward. One scout opined to me he could explode if he were to “train his rotational mobility and straight-line sprint speed.”
Indeed, we’re talking about an elite athlete.
Robinson is on a hot streak this summer on the biggest stages. In early August at Area Code Games, Robinson went 3 for 5 with a triple and a double. He drew four walks and struck out just once. He clocked a 4.32 home-to-first on a single and a 4.45-second turn around first on a triple stung into the gap. He added a 95mph rocket single in the Baseball Factory All-American Game in mid-August.
There’s no denying Robinson’s talent, and pro scouts have taken notice, but the college athletics landscape might make it even more difficult for Major League Baseball to sway Robinson away from campus. With so much NIL money flooding college athletes’ bank accounts of late, Robinson is sure to have financial options wherever he goes to school, especially given his resume and pedigree. Realistically, unless a team is willing to throw Top-15 money at Robinson next summer, there’s an outside chance he’ll be able to make that much money in three years on campus through his likeness and the opportunities that come with it. That may be a bit presumptive on my part, especially with Robinson being a tight end and not a marquee quarterback name, but the point stands. Money will assuredly be offered his way. And this doesn’t even consider the money the NFL offers out of the gate. The first pick of the fourth round in the NFL Draft this year signed a four-year deal worth ~$4.1 million. Not to mention that player can become a free agent at 25/26 years old. $4.1 million is the slot bonus for the 15th pick in the MLB Draft, and that player likely wouldn’t become a free agent until the age of 27 at the earliest. The financial gap is obviously vast.
Robinson represents a ton of narratives for the next calendar year. A dynamic, elite, two-way star will always make headlines. He’s a larger-than-life personality with more talent than he knows what to do with. It’s another opportunity for Major League Baseball to sway a premium football prospect toward their sport. Time will tell where Robinson’s heart is and what front office executives can do to help influence him toward the diamond.