As Kyler Murray navigates potential NFL suitors with his release imminent from the Arizona Cardinals, another suitor expressed interest in the former NFL Rookie of the Year: the Athletics.
Athletics general manager David Forst told MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos on Wednesday that the Athletics are “always open” to a reunion with the two-time Pro Bowl quarterback if he is interested in it.
“Kyler is an elite NFL quarterback, and I’m sure there are plenty of opportunities for him to continue his football career,” Forst said. “That said, he and his baseball representatives know that we’re always open to him exploring a return to baseball with the A’s if that time ever comes.”
While there are no reports as of Wednesday indicating Murray is interested in returning to baseball, he will likely have several potential NFL suitors this offseason. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano reported Sunday that the Minnesota Vikings were considering Murray as an option for the 2026 season.
With all the chatter about the A’s being open to Kyler Murray playing for them now that he’s about to be a football free agent, I checked on the possibility of Murray going back to baseball.
I got this response: “C’mon”
Sounds like that’s that.
— Josh Weinfuss (@joshweinfuss) March 5, 2026
The then-Oakland Athletics drafted Murray with the No. 9 pick in the 2018 MLB Draft. He signed with them and seemed to be on track for a career in the MLB.
After Murray’s 2018 college football season, in which he won the Heisman Trophy and led Oklahoma to the College Football Playoff semifinals, he stepped away from baseball to enter the 2019 NFL Draft. Now firmly into football, he was selected by the Cardinals with the No. 1 overall pick, making him the first athlete to be taken in the first round of the MLB and NFL drafts.
The Athletics still retain Murray’s MLB rights should he ever decide to return to baseball.
Murray was a collegiate standout for the Oklahoma Sooners baseball team as an outfielder in 2018, hitting .296 with 10 home runs and 47 RBIs in 51 games.
