Cubs select Mark McGwire's son Mason in MLB draft
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Imagine Mark McGwire in a Cubs hat.
The preposterous proposition came closer to reality on Monday when the Chicago Cubs selected McGwire's son Mason McGwire in the eighth round of the MLB draft. He's not a slugger like his dad, but a pitcher from Capistrano Valley High School in Southern California.
Whether he actually joins the Cubs is yet to be determined. He's committed to play for the University of Oklahoma, but could end up joining the Cubs if the price is right. MLB values his eighth-round draft slot at roughly $189,000. The Cubs will likely have to exceed that number to keep him out of Norman.
A 6-4, 190-pound right-hander, Mason sports a 92 mph fastball that's increased in velocity and a split-finger changeup. Perfect Game rates him as California's third-best right-handed prospect and the 28th-best in the nation.
His father Mark, of course, played for the Oakland A's and the St. Louis Cardinals. He made his biggest headlines in a Cardinals uniform, where he battled Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa in the now-infamous 1998 home run race that's become the face of baseball's steroid era. McGwire broke the single-season home run record that season with 70 only to be eclipsed by Barry Bonds' 73 in 2001.
While his career remains controversial, McGwire is a Cardinals icon whose son could end up playing for the arch-rival Cubs. If he does, will Mark show his face at Wrigley Field? And would he dare wear a Cubs hat if so?
