WATCH: Buccaneers Free Agent Baker Mayfield Takes Batting Practice With New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Buccaneers free agent Baker Mayfield may not be officially back with the team yet as the legal tampering period on Mar. 11 approaches, but he's still sticking around the Tampa Bay Area.
Mayfield made an appearance at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa to watch the New York Yankees' spring training matchup against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday with Bucs offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs. During that time, he took batting practice with the team, and you can check out a little bit of it below (and watch him hitting lefty, to boot):
Mayfield and Wirfs watched the game, but it wasn't a favorable score for the Yankees — they lost to the Detroit Tigers 11-5. Regardless, it shows that Mayfield is still sticking around Tampa Bay at the moment despite not reaching a deal yet, as Steinbrenner Field is right across the street from Raymond James Stadium and One Buccaneer Place.
It's not the first time Mayfield has taken batting practice. When he got drafted in 2019 by the Cleveland Browns, Mayfield stopped by the Milwaukee Brewers' training camp and took batting practice with them — he also said in the Brewers' clubhouse that baseball was his first love.
As it stands, Mayfield and the Bucs are still trying to come to an agreement to bring him back to Tampa Bay, and while the deal is likely to happen, sources have indicated that the two sides are currently far apart. That being said, things like this where he hangs out with his teammates and stays active in the area are good signs he likes it here, so we'll have to see where it goes as free agency approaches.
You can follow River Wells on Twitter @riverhwells.
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