OU baseball: Sooners sign Max McGwire, son of former MLB superstar Mark McGwire

The Sooners announced Max McGwire, son of former MLB single season home run king Mark McGwire, signed his National Letter of Intent to play ball in Norman under head coach Skip Johnson. McGwire headlines OU's 2021 recruiting class.

California ➡️ Oklahoma Welcome home, Max McGwire! #21PrOUd pic.twitter.com/xkNGv8zy9r

— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) November 11, 2020

McGwire, like his father, brings a powerful swing from the right side of the plate and, according to Johnson, is a "power hitting middle of the order type player."

The Irvine, CA native is described by Baseball Factory as "a very talented 2-way player who has athleticism and versatility with the ability to play all over the diamond." In addition to playing first base and outfield, McGwire has topped out at 95 mph as a right-handed pitcher, according to Baseball Factory.

Johnson subtly announced McGwire's commitment with a "Lookie here" tweet on September 30, 2019. That time the two-word phrase was preceded by the double eyeball emoji and followed by a hamburger emoji. Baseball fans knew the hamburger was a reference to Mark's nickname, "Big Mac."

The nickname is famously displayed on a bright yellow and red sign on the facing of the second deck at the current home of the St. Louis Cardinals, whom Mark played for in 1998 when he became the first player in league history to hit 70 home runs in a single season.

The Sooners are entering their fourth season under Johnson with high expectations after starting the shortened 2020 season 14-4 and rising as high as No. 9 in the national polls.