Mark McGwire is back with the A’s.
The former big league slugger was hired by the team as a special assistant in player development. according to the Associated Press.
It’s a homecoming of sorts for McGwire, who spent parts of 12 seasons with the A’s during their days in Oakland.
McGwire, who was drafted No. 10 overall by the A’s in the 1984 MLB Draft, won the 1987 American League Rookie of the Year and hit a then-rookie record 49 home runs.
He was a key part of the Oakland team that won three consecutive AL pennants from 1988 to 1990, including a World Series championship in 1989 against their cross-bay rival Giants.
McGwire and Jose Canseco formed one of the most iconic duos in baseball history, nicknamed the “Bash Brothers,” during their six seasons together in Oakland.
In 1997, McGwire was dealt to the Cardinals, with whom he became an even bigger figure in the game of baseball, breaking Roger Maris’ home run record in 1998 during a historic home run run with Sammy Sosa.
McGwire retired after the 2001 season, having hit 583 home runs and made 12 All-Star teams.
Since his playing days, McGwire has been kept out of the Baseball Hall of Fame due to his ties to steroids, although the A’s inducted him into their team’s Hall of Fame in 2019.
This isn’t the first time McGwire has been part of a team’s staff.
From 2010 to 2012, McGwire was the hitting coach for the Cardinals before taking the same position with the Dodgers from 2013 to 2015.
He was the bench coach for the Padres during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
The A’s are entering their second of at least three seasons in Sacramento since leaving Oakland, where they had played since 1968.
The franchise aims to move to their permanent home in Las Vegas for the 2028 season.
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