CLEVELAND -- New York Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton took batting practice with teammates on Tuesday as he continues to recover from elbow issues.

Stanton took swings before the game at Progressive Field as the Yankees prepared for the middle game of their series against the Cleveland Guardians.

While Stanton has been working behind the scenes, this was the first time he has taken outdoor batting practice.

Following New York's 3-2 loss to Cleveland, manager Aaron Boone would not characterize the importance of Stanton's outdoor session.

"I don't know how significant because he's been doing a lot more than that (inside)," Boone said. "But certainly it's good to see him out there on the and in a (BP) group hitting. So I think all of us get a smile seeing that. But I don't know if it's a significant step because he's been doing a lot more than that."

Stanton has been dealing with tendinitis in both elbows, with the ailment known as "tennis elbow" shutting him down since spring training. The 35-year-old has said his elbows also bothered him last season and it's a matter of pain tolerance.

The team does not have a timetable for Stanton's return to their lineup. It's likely he'll have to go on a minor league rehab assignment before he's ready to play in major league games.

Stanton is in his eighth season with New York. Last season, he hit 27 homers and drove in 72 runs in 114 games, and in the postseason, he was among the club's top hitters. As the Yankees advanced to the World Series, he finished with 15 hits, including seven home runs, and 16 RBIs.

Stanton has 429 homers in 15 seasons with the Yankees and Miami Marlins.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

NEW YORK -- Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sanchez was removed from his start Tuesday night in a 5-1 loss to the New York Mets because of left forearm soreness.

Phillies manager Rob Thomson said the team isn't "expecting structural damage" in Sanchez's arm, but the team will know more Wednesday if further testing is necessary.

Sanchez said he isn't concerned about his arm after being evaluated by a doctor.

"I did some movement exercises," Sanchez said in comments translated from Spanish. "The doctor checked me, all of that. That's why I'm confident there's nothing to worry about."

Sanchez explained he felt uncomfortable from the outset, during his pregame work in the bullpen, but he said he didn't believe it was an arm issue until after the second inning.

"The pitches weren't falling," Sanchez said. "The arm, everything was good, but the pitches weren't falling and moving like they always move."

Sanchez exited with the Phillies trailing 2-1 after laboring through his two innings. He threw 33 of his 58 pitches for strikes, and his velocity was a tick down from his usual output. He allowed four hits and two walks while striking out two and throwing a wild pitch.

Thomson said he asked Sanchez if he felt fine following the second inning and decided to remove him from the game when he replied that his arm felt tight. Sanchez was replaced by right-hander Joe Ross to begin the third.

A critical member of Philadelphia's strong rotation, Sanchez, 28, entered Wednesday with a 2.96 ERA in four outings this season. He struck out a career-high 12 over seven innings in his previous start, a 6-4 win over San Francisco last Thursday.

Sanchez is signed to a $22.5 million, four-year contract through 2028 that includes club options for 2029 and 2030. He was an All-Star last season, when he finished 11-9 with a 3.32 ERA in 31 starts covering 181 innings, and was a trendy preseason pick to emerge as a National League Cy Young Award contender this season. He had never before reached 100 innings in a major league season.

ESPN's Jorge Castillo contributed to this report.

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager was pulled from his club's 8-5 win over the Athletics Tuesday night in the sixth inning due to right hamstring tightness.

Seager grounded out to end the top of the sixth inning and was lifted when the Rangers took the field for the bottom of the frame. He went 1-for-4 with two runs before leaving the contest. The veteran is batting .286 with four home runs and six RBIs through 21 games this season.

Meanwhile, Athletics reliever Jose Leclerc also left the game after seven pitches with right shoulder soreness. Leclerc, a 31-year-old right-hander who signed a $10 million, one-year contract as a free agent in January, struck out Adolis Garcia leading off the seventh inning and had a 3-1 count on Marcus Semien when he summoned catcher Shea Langeliers to the mound.

Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said Leclerc would undergo testing Wednesday.

"I think more of a strain than just soreness," he said. "Obviously, he was in a little bit of pain coming off that mound. That's just, that's unfortunate for us."

Leclerc had Tommy John surgery in 2021. He is 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA in 10 appearances for the A's after going 12-20 with a 3.27 ERA in 347 relief appearances and three starts for the Rangers from 2016-24.

Information from Field Level Media and the Associated Press was used in this story.

CHICAGO -- Catcher Miguel Amaya was confident he'd be jogging around the bases when he blasted a two-out, ninth-inning baseball high into the Wrigley Field sky with his Chicago Cubs trailing 10-9 to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night.

He was right -- but just barely.

Amaya's 388-foot shot landed in the center field basket, sending the home crowd into a frenzy as Dodgers closer Tanner Scott blew the save. And one inning later, the Cubs won the game 11-10 on an Ian Happ run-scoring single off Noah Davis, capping yet another wild affair at Wrigley.

According to Statcast, Amaya's blast would have been a home run in exactly one park in the majors.

"As a baseball player, its something you dream of," Amaya said. "As soon as I hit, I felt it was out but then I saw the center fielder getting into position to catch it. Then it was, 'Oh my god, I have to run,' but it was enough to get out.

"I love those basket balls."

It was the second time in five days that both teams playing at Wrigley scored 10 or more runs; on Friday, the Cubs beat the Diamondbacks 13-11 thanks to a six-run eighth inning that was preceded by a 10-run frame by Arizona.

On Tuesday, the Cubs led 5-3 after the first inning, but the Dodgers took a 10-7 lead thanks to a five-run seventh aided by an error from third baseman Gage Workman. As has been the case all month, the Cubs kept fighting back. Right fielder Kyle Tucker brought them within one with an eighth-inning home run before Amaya tied it in the ninth.

"They've done some amazing things and some resilient things, most importantly," Cubs manager Craig Counsell said of the team's play on its homestand. "You win games like that early in the season and it's a great carry forward for the rest of the season."

The Cubs improved to 15-10 thanks to a high-powered offense that leads the league in scoring at just over six runs per game. They've tallied 10 or more runs in seven games already, their most through 25 games of a season since 1895, according to ESPN Research. No other team this season has done it more than 3 times.

Counsell credited his bullpen in shutting down the Dodgers in the final few innings.

The Cubs also did well facing Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani. He went 0 for 4, lowering his batting average against them this year to .167. Against all other teams, he's hitting .302.

He also went 0-for-3 against Shota Imanaga and is now 0-for-10 against the Cubs starter.

"The next 10 at-bats he might get 10 hits," Imanaga said. "It's been a small miracle that it's happened 10 times in a row."

The Cubs keep on performing miracles at the plate both in the colder conditions this month and in the few games where the weather has been favorable for hitters. That included Tuesday, when it was 71 degrees with the wind blowing out at first pitch. It led to six home runs, none bigger than Amaya's.

"Basket hurt us a couple times last year," Counsell said with a smirk. "It was helpful tonight."

SAN FRANCISCO -- Bay FC will play the Washington Spirit in a National Women's Soccer League match at Oracle Park, home of baseball's San Francisco Giants.

Bay FC hopes the Aug. 23 match will attract an NWSL record of 40,000-plus fans to the ballpark on the San Francisco Bay.

"We're eager for the opportunity to create league history alongside the Washington Spirit by being the first professional women's teams to play at Oracle Park and thankful to the San Francisco Giants for their support of our ambitions," Bay CEO Brady Stewart said in a statement Tuesday.

"Playing a match in San Francisco allows us to connect with our fans from around the Bay Area in an incredible setting."

Bay FC plays its home matches at PayPal Park in San Jose. The team played last year against the Chicago Stars at Wrigley Field, which drew a league-record 35,038 fans.

"Oracle Park has long been home to iconic events across sports and entertainment, and we're proud to host our first-ever women's professional soccer match this summer.

"The match represents a milestone not only for the ballpark, but for the entire Bay Area community," said Stephen Revetria, president of Giants Enterprises.

The game will be broadcast nationally on CBS.

Barcelona's Dani Olmo scored inside the first minute of the second half to earn a hard-fought 1-0 home win against Mallorca on Tuesday, extending their lead over Real Madrid at the top of the table to seven points with five games to go.

Barça dominated proceedings despite coach Hansi Flick deciding to rest several key starters ahead of Saturday's Copa del Rey final against bitter rivals Madrid, but Mallorca goalkeeper Leo Roman put on a show between the posts to keep them at bay.

The hosts finally managed to break the deadlock shortly after the break thanks to a fine piece of individual skill from Olmo, who took the ball in a tight space inside the box and quickly fired a left foot shot into the bottom corner before Mallorca's defenders could challenge him.

The win lifted Barça to 76 points at the top of the LaLiga standings with Madrid, who visit Getafe on Wednesday, seven points adrift with a game in hand.

United States men's national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino emphasized the importance of selecting players with a strong mentality heading into the Gold Cup this summer, stressing that talent alone may not be enough for a player to earn a spot in the squad.

The USMNT will face Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi Arabia and Haiti during the group stage of the tournament in hopes of advancing to the knockout round.

"The right mindset must be there, because we need to compete for our flag, our country," Pochettino said in an interview with the U.S. Soccer Federation released Tuesday.

"What we are trying to do as a staff is to optimize every single area of preparation, and the mentality of the players is really important.

"We need to be intelligent in the way that we are going to select the players and not just choose based on talent alone. We need to have the right characters to be really competitive."

The United States is coming off of a disappointing Nations League Finals last month, falling 1-0 to Panama in the semifinals before losing 2-1 to Canada in the match for third place. The Stars and Stripes failed to win the trophy for the first time after claiming victory in its first three editions.

Pochettino questioned the team's lack of effort and competitive mentality throughout the two-game international window, demanding the players to focus on intensity moving forward.

And he has continued to reinforce that message ahead of the Gold Cup.

"For sure to start we must compete hard," Pochettino said. "We must match the intensity of our opponents, because in these tournaments they are always motivated to play against the USA. Of course we must perform well to win and you don't always get a result, but for sure in order to win you have to compete.

"It's not just about showing up in your home country and trying to play nice soccer. No, you must be proud, you must fight for the people that would love to be in your position, for the millions of kids that are going to see us and dream to be one day where we are.

"This is the type of responsibility and commitment we need to show in a different way than we did in Los Angeles."

Pochettino previously spoke about the importance of mentality with ESPN, labeling the characteristic as the defining factor on the field.

"They [Argentina] go to war and to defend your badge, your flag, and that is what we need to create," he said.

Before the Gold Cup kicks off, the USMNT will return to the field when hosting Turkey and Switzerland in two international friendlies on June 7 and 10.

Manchester City's Matheus Nunes scored deep in injury time to salvage a crucial 2-1 Premier League victory over Aston Villa on Tuesday in their breathless chase for a Champions League berth next season.

The teams appeared to be heading for a draw after Marcus Rashford's penalty cancelled out Bernardo Silva's goal in the first half, but Nunes fired home Jérémy Doku's cross in the 94th minute to lift City two places to third in the table on 61 points.

Pep Guardiola's men, however, have played one more game than the three teams directly behind them, while Villa, who have lost 15 successive games at the Etihad Stadium, remained seventh on 57 points in the crowded top of the table.

City went ahead in the seventh minute when Omar Marmoush raced by Villa right-back Matty Cash before cutting the ball back for an onrushing Silva. Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez got his gloves on the ball, but not enough to stop it from sailing into the back of the net.

Rashford, who had a shot clatter off the post 18 seconds into the game, pulled Villa level from the penalty spot in the 18th minute, after VAR determined Rúben Dias clipped Jacob Ramsey from behind with his right leg. Rashford calmly sent keeper Stefan Ortega the wrong way before slotting home.

City had 14 shots to Villa's seven before clinching a deserved victory when Doku drove down the left-hand side before squaring the ball as Nunes arrived at the back post.

"Very important," Nunes told Sky Sports. "This was a very tough game, very tough opponent, and we came with the mentality that we needed to win this game. And that's what happened. Perfect timing."

Nunes brought delirious City fans to their feet with his first league goal for the team with the last shot of the game. Guardiola vigorously shook two fists in celebration while Villa manager Unai Emery looked crestfallen.

"[Villa] are on the run with us to this top five and it was a special game to get the three points," City's Dias told Sky. "Four games to go and all of them will be massively important. Important today to get the three points.

"We know how tight it is and how tight it's going to be till the end. It is a massive step for us."

City dominated possession with 61.6% and had the better chances, with the best coming in the second half.

City skipper Kevin De Bruyne sent a sumptuous second-half pass to James McAtee, but he hit the ball just wide of the far corner. McAtee wasted another brilliant chance minutes later when Nico O'Reilly threaded a pinpoint cross to the midfielder but he missed the ball completely from close range.

Rashford caused problems for City several times including a second-half chance when the on-loan Manchester United striker drove forward with the ball from midfield, yet with Ortega out of his goal, he shot into the side netting.

SOMEWHERE IN AMERICA -- "Ball!"

Prospect X faces one sideline and then flips his hips a sharp 180 degrees to make a back shoulder catch. He repeats that twice on each side, catching each ball his college quarterback sends his way. Then he jogs to the line of scrimmage and quickly takes up a ready stance. It's sunny and 70 degrees -- a beautiful spring afternoon at his home stadium, and his cheeks are already pink from the work.

"Take your time," the NFL coach says, his voice echoing through the empty stadium. "You're the only one out here."

X relaxes a bit, and asks the coach if he'd ever been to this part of the country before.

Two weeks ahead of the draft, this NFL coach has come nearly 1,500 miles for a 30-minute workout with Prospect X. And that's because X didn't play much slot receiver in college. His body type demands an adjustment in the eyes of NFL evaluators, so his role will be changing as he enters the NFL, and this coach's team needs to get a better understanding of exactly how they could use this versatile speedster.

"What's my landmark?" X asks. "Do you want a certain depth?"

X is full of detailed questions for the coach as he explains each route. X's advisor within his challenging major says that he was never satisfied with just being told an answer in class. "Under what situations is that assumption valid?" X would ask him. "There's a difference between understanding something and knowing something," the advisor says, "and he really wanted to understand it."

Because X hasn't trained much as a slot receiver, this is even more important to him. X completes a speed cut on a 10-yard out route and then takes four steps back inside, exactly as instructed, to catch the ball.

The coach claps enthusiastically. "Nice job!"

After about 25 routes, the coach is satisfied. X's college is filming the workout, and they'll send the video back to the club. X thought this might be an hour-long workout, and he's ready for more. He's cut like granite and could run into the wee hours of the night if anybody asked him to. Instead, the coach asks him to take a walk around the field so they can talk out of earshot of X's coaches, and ESPN's reporter, who have been watching the workout.

As they finish their slow lap, X asks the coach for any advice he has for him. Be available, learn as much as you can, and remember that any team who takes you knows that you're not a finished product. They want you for your potential.

This is welcome news for a sub-power 4 prospect who's been fretting a bit over learning a new job last-minute and being judged on what he knows right now. It's the reason he didn't get any offseason attention -- no combine invite or all-star game appearance -- because no one knew quite where to put him. A blistering 40 time at his pro day has attracted much more NFL attention in recent weeks.

"How do you know about my sleeper?!" one NFL special teams coordinator asked, exasperated when ESPN asked him about X.

ESPN spent the past few months on a hunt for the most overlooked prospect in the 2025 NFL draft. After polling scouts and coaches, tracking pro days, watching tape and thinking like a general manager, we landed on a player who we believe is the draft's best-kept secret.

For each of the past six years, readers of this series have made their best guesses as to X's identity, which will be revealed in a follow-up story after the draft. But for now -- for the sake of the NFL teams in hot pursuit -- he is "Prospect X."

AFTER HE'S SHOWERED and has watched the film of his afternoon workout, X heads downtown with his girlfriend to one of their favorite restaurants. Before he can even look at the menu, the server recognizes him.

"[Prospect X!] welcome back," he says. "Thank you so much for everything you did for [X's COLLEGE] football."

X thanks him back. He can't go anywhere in his hometown or college town without someone stopping him, and on this night, he gets two extra scoops of homemade ice cream with dessert, and he isn't charged for the burrata appetizer. "This happens all the time," his girlfriend says. "I reap the benefits."

When they started dating, X's girlfriend says her family freaked out when she told them about her new boyfriend. Of course they'd known about him since he was a high school player in a historic town. Once, his younger sister name-dropped him to get into a frat party. It worked.

X appreciates all the kind words, but he really doesn't love all the attention. He's the quiet, serious, studious type. He's such a rules-follower that he didn't even drink coffee in college because he knew caffeine in high amounts is an NCAA-banned substance. "He's very strict with himself," his mom says.

"He doesn't do well with free time," says dad.

He doesn't even particularly like going out to eat, and he'd stay home if given the choice. So he can't wait until he gets to the NFL, where nobody will know who he is for a while. He spent two months training for his pro day at a facility in another state, and he says it was "so refreshing" to not be known there, and "have that feeling that you have to earn everything again."

Despite his status as a local hero, X's head coach says he was an "afterthought" to scouts at the start of this past football season, who came calling on his school to check on a couple of other players. X was last on the list, if he was on it at all. "It was just, oh, we'll keep an eye on him," the head coach says.

The head coach is respected by NFL personnel for his track record of producing players, and his office wall features a signed jersey of a current NFL starting quarterback, one that the coach who worked out X has also coached.

The director of strength and conditioning for X's school says one NFL team that recently hired a new general manager sent a scout to campus in October, but he didn't ask about X, who was by that point well on his way to a career season.

"Aren't you going to ask about X?" the strength coach asked.

"Who?" the scout replied.

So all season, the strength coach campaigned for his guy. "If he's not on your list, you don't know what you're doing," he told every scout.

He repeatedly messaged clips of X to a popular college football analytics Twitter account that features the fastest players of the week. He asked them to please test X's MPH so he could be featured, too. But they never responded.

"He never really put crazy miles per hour out there because his first three steps, he separates so much that he doesn't have anybody that's actually pushing him to his highest velocity," the strength coach says.

But because he'd been timing X in 5-yard builds and 10-yard flys for his entire college career, he knew exactly what 40-yard speed X was capable of, and he told everyone who would listen that X was going to run extremely fast. The kind of time that gets a player drafted. In fact, he told scouts he'd "bet his house on it."

"Bring your popcorn," he told an NFC West scout ahead of the pro day. "We might sell concessions."

But every coach and agent says their players will run fast, and then they don't. So the strength coach's bet didn't mean much, and scouts were late to get on board because X had performed so many different roles in college -- whatever his team needed -- that he didn't land at the top of any one position.

"The first three years of his body of work was, what is he?" says the head coach. "I don't know that anybody would have looked at him enough to say that kid's gonna run [fast at his size]. There's some plays in the past where you'd say that kid's really fast, but it's [non power-4], so how fast is he? He'd been fighting that a little bit."

X ran just as expected on his pro day, in front of 13 NFL teams, and his strength coach was able to keep his home. "You know it's a good time when the scouts all smile at each other and then show each other their watches," the strength coach said.

"He eats the turf," says an assistant coach. "It's loud when he runs, it's gaining ground, it's strong."

The strength coach says that after X ran, the NFC West scout told him: "We're gonna try to go after him."

And when X ran routes that day, his head coach noticed the scouts maintained an iron-clad focus. "Sometimes when there's different drills being done, you can just see the intentionality of the [scouts] watching fall off a bit," he said.

Before his pro day, X had talked to only one NFL special teams coordinator, one other assistant coach and one NFC West scout. Since then, he has had phone calls with two NFC position coaches and two AFC assistant coaches, and he met with another AFC special teams coordinator and position coach on a visit to an NFL facility. And he's worked out for two NFC teams.

"People are feeling like they forgot, like they missed something," X says. "And so everyone's kind of jumping on the scene right now."

X's head coach says he's been asked by many teams recently -- what position does he see X playing in the NFL?

"He's probably a little bit of a [last-minute] panic conversation," the head coach says. "... [The scouts] walked away, saying, OK, we gotta figure this out."

"He's a wild card that you want to have," the special teams coordinator says, "You don't know exactly what you're going to do with him yet until you get him here."

PROSPECT X PACES in his parents' kitchen. He's back home for the first time in months to fulfill an NIL obligation, but while he's here, he also needs the kind of basic life skills help only parents can provide.

"Do you know where I could go find those immunization records?" he asks his mom. "I need to fill this out today."

The NFL team that is bringing him in on a '30 visit' in a few days has sent him some paperwork to fill out to release his medical information, and he needs to know the dates of all his vaccinations, something he's never thought about before. Each NFL club is allowed to bring up to 30 prospects into their facility for a pre-draft visit, and since he wasn't invited to the scouting combine, teams don't have a medical on him. The team requesting his records will be able to share those, and their own evaluation of him, including scans and X-rays, with the other 31 clubs. His draftability depends on tracking down this information.

"I'll have to look for your pediatrician records," his mom says. "I can dig out your baby book."

"X! Would it not be in MyChart?" his sister asks.

"It could be," he says, sighing in frustration, "but I don't know if I can even log in anymore."

He sits down on a recliner in the living room and stares at his phone screen, trying out different passwords. His mom disappears and comes back with his baby book and a box of mementos, including stacks of newspaper clippings covering his high school football exploits. This box is from X's late grandpa's stash. He printed out or clipped every article about his grandson and took copious notes on yellow legal pads of X's individual stats and the team's performance.

X's grandpa was a popular youth football coach, and he's the one who first taught X about the game. Before X was old enough to play tackle football, the two spent hours together in the basement. Grandpa explained strategy to X while he tried it out on Madden.

X graduated high school with 12 varsity letters and was asked to be the sixth grade commencement speaker at two elementary schools. Neither mom nor dad have any idea where his relentless drive comes from. He writes down his goals and, "it's like he wills himself to do something," his mom says.

A year ago, X made a list of four big goals for the 2024 college football season, and he checked three of the four off his list. But he didn't have any NFL-related goals last year. It felt too far ahead and he preferred to stay in the moment.

As a high school junior, X thought his football days were almost over, because he hadn't been recruited by anyone, anywhere. Those few months after his junior football season were a "darker time," he says. He'd read that Bills quarterback Josh Allen got his opportunity to play at Wyoming by emailing his tape to dozens of college coaches, so X did the same. He emailed every FBS school in his region but didn't get any traction.

When he went to the junior day at the closest FBS program, it became clear why. Each coach introduced themselves to the kids and parents and listed their recruiting areas. None of them recruited his home territory, though multiple coaches were dedicated to covering smaller and more populated counties of a neighboring state. So X wound up at a smaller school that he chose for its academic offerings.

Now that she's delivered the baby book, X's mom leaves him in the living room to finish his forms.

"He can't hear us," she whispers as she walks down the stairs into their cold basement. "So I need to tell you something."

"He's brilliant. I mean, brilliant."

She points out his childhood bedroom wall, decorated with dozens of copper plaques he's earned for both academics and football in high school and college.

"The guys literally look at him like he's a machine. You have to remind guys that he's a human being, he's just really disciplined." Prospect X's college strength coach

X couldn't attend his college graduation because he had football practice, so he sent his parents to accept the department's top senior award on his behalf. X's mom says one of his professors told her that X was so smart that a professor had to ask another professor for help reviewing a paper he turned in, because they weren't familiar with the mathematical models he'd used in it. And another time, a professor sent his paper to the head of the department to make sure that X really wrote it.

"They thought that in such a busy schedule, how can he do so much work, researching and writing an outstanding paper?" the department head said.

"The guys literally look at him like he's a machine," says his strength coach. "You have to remind guys that he's a human being, he's just really disciplined."

He's "a walking computer," one of his assistant coaches says.

But as a freshman, X's coaches said he didn't stand out in the way he does now. He was buried on the depth chart, and was trying out a few positions he hadn't played before.

His coaches didn't realize his full potential until the postseason -- when he got a real jump in playing time and became the spark on offense that his team was sorely missing. "I suppose the rest is history," his head coach says.

X CHECKED TWO new states off his list when he visited an AFC team one week before the draft. The night before he left, X and his girlfriend researched all the teams' coaches so he'd be familiar with their background, and they watched YouTube videos about the city, so he'd know what to expect.

Although the team consistently ranks far from the gold standard on the NFLPA's report card grades for its facility, X was impressed by all the amenities available to players, stuff that he didn't even have the vocabulary to describe. "These zip-up compartments that help with sleep and recovery," he said. "And these water ... I don't know, essentially, like, water beds?"

He'd turned in his forms on time and got his scans and X-rays done right in the building. He met with a position coach briefly, and he spent the bulk of his time, about three hours in multiple sessions, with the special teams coordinator. They watched his tape and then spent a lot of time watching a current NFL player to whom many teams compare him -- an all-purpose player that can help on offense and special teams.

X says the coordinator got into granular detail on the team's vision for him, and he learned specific protections. Their conversation spilled into dinner at the team cafeteria, where they ate build-your-own-burrito bowls.

"He was like, 'I just can't help but see similarities that you can exceed some certain abilities that [current player] has,'" X says.

When X was done for the day, he walked around the neighborhood near the facility and admired how clean and green it was.

During his layover back home, an AFC West team called to confirm they had the right number for him on draft day. The conversation was so quick that X didn't even get the name of the scout. He's also talked with an AFC South team's assistant coach, who connected him to the team's injured player that he'd likely replace. They talked for an hour about what the role entails, and X was stunned the injured player was so helpful.

The first NFL coach to talk to him in the draft process was a veteran special teams coordinator, who reached out during the scouting combine and left him a kind voicemail: "You have a ton of film, you don't have to be at the combine. I wish you were, but don't worry about it."

The coordinator has strong connections to X's college conference, and he says recruiting in the NFL is an "underrated" tool. He's known about X "for a while," and he hopes that being the first NFL coach to acknowledge him as special will count for something on Saturday of the draft.

While X was on his 30 visit, an ex-NFL player now working for a rejuvenated franchise scheduled a private workout with him. This former player first called X the day after his pro day, and when X saw the area code for the player's former team, one he was a huge fan of growing up, he answered right away.

Like the first workout, X won't have much time to prepare, but he prefers it that way. He found all the pro day training and scripting to be a little bit like "a glorified pageant," and he'd much rather respond to actual coaching than show up to perform a hand-picked set of routes. "It's like a dance recital," he says. "You better look really good, because you practiced it a bunch."

"I am just going to go out there and move how I would move as an athlete. And be ready for coaching, and take advice from a great receiver like him."

One scout said half the scouts at X's pro day think he will be drafted. The other half see him more as a priority free agent. X's agent said a special teams coordinator told him he doesn't think X makes it past the fifth round. The agent posted an unlisted two-minute highlight video of X to YouTube and distributed it only to NFL personnel. It has nearly 600 views.

As of now, the team he visited has only one late-round pick. But the former receiver's team has two, and the other team he worked out for, in the same division, has even more.

X didn't even think about making any draft day plans until this past week. His parents bought tickets to a concert Saturday in Las Vegas months ago, before they understood it was NFL draft weekend and before they realized their son may have some important incoming calls. They had a whole trip planned with a big group of friends. But a week ahead, they decided to sell those tickets because they want to be there at their family home with X on his big day, to see him get drafted or sign as a priority free agent. "Either way," his mom said in a text. "We're so nervous and excited."