The newly minted Los Angeles Rams went all-in when they sent a bevy of draft picks to the Tennessee Titans, to trade up to select quarterback Jared Goff with the first overall pick of the 2016 NFL Draft on Thursday.
The pick was met with praise as the Rams made a bold move to take a franchise quarterback. The city of Los Angeles sent congratulatory tweets Goff’s way, but one particular message from Los Angeles right fielder Yasiel Puig might have topped them all.
Puig sent his welcome to the new L.A. QB, but retweeted a three-year-old tweet by Goff, where the then 18-year-old tweeted he hoped Puig got hit in the ribs with a fastball.
@JaredGoff16 Big hug, Welcome to LA, I show you around, be my guest to @Dodgers game #PuigYourFriend #PuigNotLate https://t.co/85B1djlAGM
— Yasiel Puig (@YasielPuig) April 29, 2016
There’s some context behind Goff’s old tweet. He’s a California native and is a San Francisco Giants fan. There’s a bitter rivalry between the Giants and Dodgers, and Goff was just taking part in it, hoping Puig would get drilled with a fastball. It’s not the most appropriate thing to tweet, but it’s not really all that harsh. It is awkward though, considering Puig referred to it the day after Goff was drafted.
Puig seems to be extending an olive branch here. He’s not going to be able to convert Goff into a Giants fan, but by inviting him to a game he’ll get a chance to see his fellow L.A. team get to play. Still, Puig thinks he can make Goff a Dodgers fan yet.
Congrats @RamsNFL, good player, and thank you for bringing us the new @Dodgers fan #Dodgerblue
— Yasiel Puig (@YasielPuig) April 29, 2016
Hopefully, this is the start of an unlikely friendship.
