Former ICC baseball player makes it to the Major League
Mason McCoy joins the Toronto Blue Jays and has advice for aspiring players
Former Illinois Central College baseball player Mason McCoy has joined the Show, becoming only the third player from ICC to rise up to a Major League Baseball team. He became a Toronto Blue Jay last month.
“It hit me when I saw my jersey in the locker room,” McCoy told Harbinger Student Media in a video call interview.
McCoy stacked up an impressive record while at Illinois Central College. He was a two-time junior college (Juco) All-American and a two-time two-time all-region and all-conference selection. He was named Freshman Player of the Year after hitting .394 with 84 hits, 18 doubles, six triples, and five home runs. As a sophomore he hit .382 with 58 hits and eight doubles.
That followed an equally impressive high school career, where he was a four-time all-area and all-conference selection. As a junior, he had a batting average of .564, and he also lettered in baseball, basketball, and soccer, earning all-conference honors in basketball and soccer.
McCoy says these successes didn’t come easy. “It’s been an uphill battle. I wasn’t highly recruited out of highschool and I went to ICC.”
McCoy was drafted in the sixth round of the 2017 MLB draft by the Baltimore Orioles. He spent six seasons in the minor leagues with the team. He was then traded to the Seattle Mariners in 2022 where he spent one and a half years in that minor league organization. This year he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, where he played 21 games with the Blue Jays AAA team before getting the call up to come play for the Toronto Blue Jays.
He’s the third ICC baseball player to ever go pro. The two others are Hall of Famer Jim Thome and San Diego Padres player Andrew Werner.
McCoy says aspiring student athletes need to put in time and work and work on their mental game.
“It takes a lot of time. I’ve been to about every state except four,” McCoy says, adding “It is 90% mental 10% skill.”
Congratulations to Mason McCoy! Wonderful reporting Brock Alkire! Batter Up!!⚾️