Inside The Dodgers

Former Dodgers Draft Pick Signs With Los Angeles Chargers

Gabe Smallson|
Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei (5) celebrates scoring a nine-yard touchdown against NC State, during the fourth quarter at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina Saturday, October 1, 2022. Ncaa Football Clemson Football Vs Nc State Wolfpack
Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei (5) celebrates scoring a nine-yard touchdown against NC State, during the fourth quarter at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina Saturday, October 1, 2022. Ncaa Football Clemson Football Vs Nc State Wolfpack | Ken Ruinard / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Los Angeles Dodgers

Tom Brady, John Elway, Deion Sanders, and a few other Hall of Fame football players are in the rare club of having a career in the NFL, despite being drafted by an MLB ball club. A former Los Angeles Dodgers draft pick seems to be taking the same career trajectory as the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers signed him as an undrafted free agent.

D.J. Uiagalelei was selected by the Dodgers in the final pick in the 2023 MLB draft. Despite growing up in Southern California as a Dodgers fan, Uiagalelei was in the middle of a collegiate football career and hadn't played organized baseball since high school.

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It was his fastball at St. John's Boscoe High School — about 20 miles from Dodger Stadium — that MLB.com's Sarah Wexler reported was touching 95 mph. He had the attention of Dodgers scouts before he went to Clemson University as a five-star football recruit, but still had the reputation for L.A. to use the draft's final pick to take a chance on the 6-foot-5 quarterback.

“Honestly, he could have been a top-couple-round guy if he stuck with baseball,” Dodgers area scouting supervisor Jonah Rosenthal said. “But he became a five-star quarterback, and coming to Clemson, when you have that status, I mean, you obviously run with the football.”

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After three seasons at Clemson, Uiagalelei transferred to Oregon State for his second Junior year-classified season, and then finished his college journey at Florida State University this past season. Although not drafted in the NFL, Uiagalelei will still pursue a professional sports career in Los Angeles.

As for who the Dodgers selected in the draft, their first selection was outfielder Kendall George with the No. 36 overall pick.

Through rookie league and High-A play so far, the 20-year-old is hitting .292/.398/.357 with an OPS of .755. With already 63 stolen bases to his name over three seasons of play, it appears the Dodgers still ended up with a hyper-athletic prospect.

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For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on SI.

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Gabe Smallson
GABE SMALLSON

Gabe Smallson is a sportswriter based in Los Angeles. His focus is sports and entertainment content. Gabe has previously worked at DodgersNation and Newsweek. He graduated from San Francisco State University in 2020 and is a Masters Candidate at the University of Southern California. You can get in touch with Gabe by emailing gabe.smallson@lasportsreport.com. You can find him on X @gabesmallson

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