Eagles QB Jalen Hurts shows he can hit â with Phillies
Jalen Hurts has shown he can take a hit as the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles. On Tuesday, the former Alabama standout was doing the hitting – taking his swings in the batting cage before the Philadelphia Phillies’ Major League Baseball game against the Detroit Tigers.
Hurts and Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown visited the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The pair of Pro Bowlers took batting practice, and Hurts warmed up his arm throwing (a baseball) with Phillies manager Rob Thomson.
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Hurts played baseball into high school before concentrating on football, and Brown was chosen in the 19th round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres. A Starkville (Mississippi) High School star, Brown chose to play football at Ole Miss, even though he played in the Under Armour All-American Baseball Game.
Hurts hit the game-winning home run in former Alabama and current Philadelphia wide receiver DeVonta Smith’s charity softball game last summer. The quarterback will be back on Smith’s team again on Saturday, when event returns to Coca-Cola Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Also playing on Smith’s team will be Eagles cornerback James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove), New England Patriots linebacker Mack Wilson (Carver-Montgomery, Alabama) and Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens (Benjamin Russell).
Former Penn State and current Washington Commanders wide receiver Jahan Dotson will lead the opposition, and he has four former Alabama standouts on his roster – Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore, Tennessee Titans safety Shyheim Carter, New York Giants safety Xavier McKinney and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle – as well as Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt (Park Crossing) and Jacksonville Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas (Lee-Montgomery, Auburn).
After the visit from the NFL stars, the Phillies defeated the Tigers 1-0, with former Lee-Huntsville and Wallace State pitcher Craig Kimbrel picking up the 403rd save of his MLB career.
Hurts and Brown almost have completed their offseason work with the Eagles. Philadelphia has a practice remaining on Thursday before breaking until training camp opens next month.
The 2023 campaign will be Hurts’ third as the Eagles’ starting quarterback.
In 2022, Hurts finished second in the voting for The Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player Award and made second-team All-Pro as he helped Philadelphia set a team record for victories and win the NFC championship before the Eagles fell to the Kansas City Chiefs 38-35 in Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12.
In the Super Bowl, Hurts became the only player to have at least 300 passing yards, 70 rushing yards and three touchdown runs in the same NFL game. Hurts also threw a touchdown pass in the contest.
In 15 regular-season games in 2022, Hurts completed 306-of-460 passes for 3,701 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions for a passer rating of 101.5 and ran for 760 yards and 13 touchdowns on 165 carries. Hurts became the first quarterback in NFL history to have a passing-efficiency rating of at least 100 while also running for at least 10 touchdowns.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.