Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray has no demands as A’s, MLB try to lure him to baseball

MLB is trying to persuade Oklahoma’s Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Kyler Murray to pursue a professional baseball career with the Oakland Athletics.

A contingent of A’s brass, as well as a marketing representative from MLB, met with Murray earlier today in Dallas, according to multiple reports.

A report saying Murray is demanding $15 million to play baseball is inaccurate, a source told the Star-Telegram. There are no firm financial demands for Murray to pursue a career in baseball, but MLB is looking at creative ways to make it more financially enticing for Murray.

MLB clearly feels Murray would be good for a sport that is trying to attract young, promising African-American athletes. Just 8.4 percent of players were black when MLB opened its season last year.

Among the options would be having Murray sign a major-league deal with the A’s, according to an ESPN report, which would put him on the 40-man roster and allow him to receive significantly more guaranteed money than the $4.66 million bonus he received as the ninth overall pick by the A’s in last year’s MLB Draft.

But Murrray is facing a life-altering decision whether to pursue baseball or football. He is expected to enter this year’s NFL Draft on Monday, and could be seen a first-round talent by some teams after his historic season with Oklahoma.

This story was originally published January 13, 2019 at 9:37 PM.