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Former NFL Star Golden Tate Talks West Coast League Stint, His Baseball Future

Golden Tate spent 11 seasons in the NFL, but he was also drafted twice as a baseball player. In June, he played for the Port Angeles Lefties.

Gary Phillips

Former NFL Star Golden Tate Talks West Coast League Stint, His Baseball Future
Former NFL Star Golden Tate Talks West Coast League Stint, His Baseball Future /

Long before he became a Super Bowl-winning, Pro Bowl wide receiver, Golden Tate spent his childhood watching Major League Baseball’s Braves.

The Tennessee native directed his fandom toward nearby Atlanta, Chipper Jones, Andruw Jones, John Smoltz and company. As his “first love” grew, Tate soon found himself enamored with the likes of Ken Griffey Jr., Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

Tate was a talented enough ballplayer to be drafted twice. The Arizona Diamondbacks took him in the 42nd round in 2007 out of Pope John Paul II High School, while the San Francisco Giants picked him in the 50th round in 2010 out of Notre Dame. Tate played two seasons of baseball for the Fighting Irish, hitting .318/.375/.402 with one homer, 25 RBI, 16 stolen bases and 51 runs scored as a freshman and sophomore, before fully committing to football. Tate went on to become a second-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2010, seemingly putting an end to any shot of a baseball career.

But Tate’s passion for baseball never died. So when the 33-year-old received an opportunity to sign with the with Port Angeles Lefties – an independent, summer college prospect team in the West Coast League – he jumped at it in June.

"I kind of just wanted to train for something and give it a shot and play in the West Coast League for a series or two and see what happens,” Tate, who hasn’t played in the NFL since 2020, said at a recent Icon Series celebrity golf tournament. “The guys in the bigs make it look so easy. You look at it like, 'Ah, I can do that,' and then you get up there and see live pitching and you're just looking like a goofball because it's all timing and mechanics."

Despite not playing competitively in years, Tate said it was a soft-tossing session with ex-big league catcher Matt Nokes that spurred his stint with Port Angeles. Nokes, a former Giant, Tiger, Yankee, Oriole and Rockie, came away impressed and encouraged Tate to play.

Facing competition several tiers below major league level, Tate fared well during his brief tenure with the Washington-based Lefties. The outfielder totaled five games, slashing .263/.364/.368 with five hits, two doubles, three RBI, one stolen base, two walks and five strikeouts.

Despite some success, Tate isn’t sure if he’ll keep playing baseball. He and his wife have a newborn, a 3-year-old and a 4-year-old at home, and a more serious commitment to the diamond means signing up for a schedule that’s far lengthier than the NFL’s 17-game slate. Tate was also able to avoid the pitfalls of minor league baseball – like poor accommodations and road trips – as he played just two home series.

"I like the grind. I like the process. I don't mind sitting in the minors for a year, six months, two years, however long, but I don't think it's fair to my family,” Tate said. “So that's why I'm kind of pumping the brakes a little bit and really thinking about it. I'm not one to just kind of see how I feel and then decide. I want to really think this out and see what happens.

“But I was there to play baseball and I got to do that. I really enjoyed it."

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Gary Phillips
GARY PHILLIPS

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