Double Play: Tom Brady Swaps New England Patriots Helmet for Baseball Cap?
For all the heartbreak, drama, and bad football that followed Tom Brady’s departure from the New England Patriots, there isn’t an honest Bostonian who would prefer it had never happened at all.
But what if it hadn’t? Bowman explored that alternate reality in a recent ad featuring a signed Brady baseball card, highlighting the fact that he was selected by the Montreal Expos in 1995.
What if Tom Brady decided to play baseball instead of football?
Brady, famously, was the last professional athlete the Expos drafted to retire. They took him, a catcher, in the 18th round, though he had only fallen that far because of signability concerns—something about playing football at Michigan.
The ad, posted by Brady, took a spin on his most notable accomplishments on the gridiron, drawing clever parallels between the sports.
“You know why Tom Brady won seven rings?” asked a bartender. “It wasn’t because of his game calling or his arm, it was because of his hitting.”
“649 home runs, what a power hitter,” said a customer, referring to his career touchdown passes.
The ad made sure to call Brady the greatest to ever do it, citing his seven championships in 23 seasons and a historical comeback over Atlanta.
Even former Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos legend Pedro Martinez made a cameo, reminding teammates and patrons that the only time Brady let them lose was to the Giants–twice.
Bowman set up an extension to the ad in which former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, donning the San Francisco Giants’ orange and white, showed off the two rings he won over Brady.
The ad implies a Cooperstown-bound Brady would have saved Montreal baseball, rather than bringing it to Washington D.C., where they became the Washington Nationals. Of course, that reality was too good to be true. The commercial ended with (real-life) Brady waking up from a dream, wondering what could have been.
Patriots fans are sure glad he chose the right sport. However, having gone to Michigan and, obviously, New England, he is technically an undrafted free agent … just in case retirement is too boring.
