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2:56 AM UTC
Superstar center fielder Julio Rodríguez and emerging NBA star Paolo Banchero have a lot in common.
Each won his league’s Rookie of the Year Award in 2022. Each has connections to Seattle. And as of Friday, each has an autographed jersey from the other.
J-Rod paid a visit to Banchero before Friday night’s contest between Banchero’s Orlando Magic and the Philadelphia 76ers at Kia Center. The two swapped jerseys, with Rodríguez personalizing his No. 44 for Banchero, and Banchero doing the same with one of his No. 5 jerseys for Rodríguez.
This wasn’t the first time these young stars had met — Banchero visited J-Rod while attending a Mariners game at T-Mobile Park last spring. It would make sense for Banchero to root for the M’s — after all, he was born in Seattle and played at O’Dea High School before being selected out of Duke with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
J-Rod’s sensational 2022 campaign, in which he became the fastest player in AL/NL history to reach 25 home runs and 25 steals in his Major League career, earned him American League Rookie of the Year honors. Banchero’s great ’22 performance for the Magic resulted in an NBA Rookie of the Year trophy.
Given how things have begun for the 21-year-old Banchero and the 23-year-old Rodríguez, each would be wise to make room for more hardware in the future.
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