Before Jets WR Garrett Wilson and Mets 3B Brett Baty were playing their respective professional sports, the two childhood friends were dominating at Lake Travis High School.
Despite their different sports the two were drafted to the same city and last night, they ended up on the same field. Wilson, wearing Baty’s jersey, tossed the first pitch of the Mets game to Baty, who donned Wilson’s 17.
“The sheer fact that we both got drafted to New York teams is pretty crazy,” Baty said after the game to SNY. “I mean he was a great childhood friend for me. He’s the best guy in the world…it was really cool to be able to catch his first pitch.”
Baty and Wilson terrorized middle school football as a nightmarish QB/WR combo that is simply unfair. The duo also shared the basketball court together in 2016-17 as sophomores at Lake Travis. They made it as far as the quarterfinals before falling to San Antonio Wagner 58-44.
More: District 25-6A roundup: Westlake secures title, Lake Travis 2nd
Wilson was a first-team member of the Statesman’s All-Central Texas basketball and football teams and the Lake Travis View’s male athlete of the year before committing to the Ohio State and eventually being taken 10th by the Jets. Baty on the other hand, was initially committed to Texas before signing with the Mets who drafted him with the 12th pick.
Even as the Jets spun the quarterback carousel last season, it was evident that they had struck gold with Wilson. He was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year thanks to his 1,103 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Baty played 11 games in the MLB last year before a thumb injury cost him the season, although he did hit a home run in his first ever at bat. He currently has a .239/.313/.385 triple slash in 36 MLB games in 2023.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Jets’ Garrett Wilson throws first pitch to Mets’ Brett Baty