The '23 HR Derby favorite might be ... Bills QB Josh Allen?
For the past five years, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has become a household name due to his pulverizing style of play on the gridiron. On Monday, he showed that style of play translates to the baseball diamond as well, as the signal-caller had a pregame batting practice session at Rogers Centre that came complete with some moon-scraping home runs.
Allen, who visited Rogers Centre with fellow Bills quarterbacks Kyle Allen and Matt Barkley, took the cage in white and blue batting gloves as well as a personalized Blue Jays jersey that featured his name and number.
With the rest of the quarterbacks watching, Allen broke out an open batting stance and compact swing and smashed four home runs, one of which reached the second deck in left field. After he left the batter’s box, Allen met with Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer, among other Blue Jays.
Earlier this month, Allen, who turns 27 on Sunday, participated in a charity softball game held by teammate Micah Hyde, where he launched a softball out of Sahlen Field in Buffalo. He had won the tournament’s home run derby championship the previous two years, but he was upset by teammate Spencer Brown this year.
While Allen played baseball in high school, he was known more for his exploits on the mound than in the batter’s box, with his fastball reportedly reaching 90 mph at one point.