Who is this? Drew Henson.
What sports did he play? Football and Baseball.
What teams did he play for?
Henson was one of the most prized and sought after baseball and football prospects in the nation as a high schooler. The 1998 Gatorade High School Baseball Player of the Year and one of the best Quarterback recruits in the country, Henson decided to play football at the University of Michigan while playing professional baseball. Henson spent most of his six seasons of professional baseball in the Yankees Minor League system. Henson was drafted in the third round of the MLB draft by the Bronx Bombers and agreed to a $2 million signing bonus, at the time the most money the Yankees had ever given to a draft pick. He made his professional baseball debut at the age of 18 in 1998 with the Yankee’s rookie-level team in the GCL.
After making his baseball debut, Henson reported to Ann Arbor where he was the highly-touted backup to junior Quarterback Tom Brady, an uninspiring placeholder between the graduated star Brian Griese and the freshman pheonom Henson. Although a backup, Henson played in seven games, including Michigan’s Citrus Bowl win over Arkansas. Many expected Henson to return in the fall for his sophomore year and win the starting job from the senior, Brady.
His first year of college football behind him, Henson made his full-season debut the next season as a member of the Yankees’ High-A affiliate, the Tampa Yankees. Henson performed so well during his second year of professional baseball that he was rated the 24th best prospect in baseball by Baseball America after the season.
While things were looking up for Henson in baseball, he was unable to beat-out Tom Brady for the starting job and the two Quarterbacks ended up beginning the season as “co-starters” until Brady won the primary role by outperforming Henson. Nonetheless, Henson still managed to nearly double his playing time from his freshman to his sophomore season and, with Brady graduating, was the unquestioned starter entering the 2000 season.
Henson began the 2000 baseball season with tremendous expectations and earned a promotion to the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate in Norwich. While he was performing well on the diamond and getting closer to his goal of earning his pinstripes, the business of baseball took over and Henson was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in a deal for Denny Neagle. Interestingly, after playing in only 16 games for Cincinnati’s Double-A Chattanooga team in 2000, Henson was traded back to the Yankees prior to the 2001 season.
Now the unquestioned starter in Ann Arbor, Henson led the Wolverines to a share of the Big Ten Title and a 38-26 win over Ohio State in the season finale. In his last collegiate game, Henson guided the Wolverines to a 31-28 win over Auburn in the Citrus Bowl.
In a strange twist of circumstances, just months after leading Michigan to victory over Ohio State, Henson found himself playing for the Yankees’ AAA affiliate the Columbus Clippers, the home of the Buckeyes, and the Wolverine Quarterback was often booed by Columbus fans at homegames. Nevertheless, Henson demonstrated enough ability to be ranked as the #9 overall prospect in the minors by Baseball America prior to the 2002 season and he looked well on his way to reaching his potential as a superstar.
Although he only played in the Minor Leagues until he was 23 years-old, Henson managed to play in over 500 games with over 2,000 plate appearances, 460 hits, 111 doubles, 67 homeruns, 274 RBIs, and a career .248 batting average.
Henson made his Major League debut with the New York Yankees in 2002. In total, Henson played in 8 Major League games during the 2002 and 2003 seasons, going 1-for-9 and scoring three runs. Henson’s last Major League game was on September 28, 2003.
Although he was still pursuing his baseball career as a member of the Yankees organization and had not expressed any interest in returning to football, Henson was drafted by the Houston Texans in the sixth-round (192nd overall) in the 2003 NFL draft. That choice ended up foreshadowing Henson’s decision the next year to retire from baseball and try his luck under center.
Unfortunately, Henson’s football career was no more inspiring than his Major League baseball career, playing in a total of just nine games, starting once, seven with the Dallas Cowboys in 2004 and two with the Detroit Lions in 2008. Overall, Henson completed 11 passes in 20 attempts for 98 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
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