{"id":930715,"date":"2026-07-12T22:29:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T22:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/930715\/"},"modified":"2026-07-12T22:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T22:29:18","slug":"mlb-futures-game-chicago-prospects-embrace-the-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/930715\/","title":{"rendered":"MLB Futures Game: Chicago prospects embrace the experience"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHILADELPHIA \u2014 Two days shy of the anniversary of being drafted by the Chicago Cubs made Sunday\u2019s appearance in the All-Star Futures Game a surreal experience for Josiah Hartshorn<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When the Cubs selected Hartshorn in the 2025 sixth round, ultimately going way over slot at $2 million to sway him from going the college route, the organization envisioned big things for the first baseman\/outfielder who only turned 19 in February. Now, 363 days after getting the call that he was drafted on July 14, Hartshorn shared the field at Citizens Bank Park with some of the top prospects in baseball.<\/p>\n

\u201cComing to a big-league ballpark, especially in All-Star week, is something special,\u201d Hartshorn told the Tribune. \u201cEven the traffic getting into the hotel Saturday was unbelievable. But this is such a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartshorn and right-hander Mason McGwire represented the Cubs in Sunday\u2019s Futures Game, each seeing action in the National League\u2019s 6-1 loss to the American League. Hartshorn entered in the top of the fourth and went 0-for-2 with a groundout and a flyout. McGwire saw action in the final inning, hitting one batter and recording a strikeout.<\/p>\n

Hartshorn, rated the No. 29 prospect in the minors by Baseball America, has crushed the ball in his first professional season. He needed only 39 games to prove to the Cubs he was ready for a tougher challenge, regardless of his age and experience, behind a disciplined approach that saw him record more walks than strikeouts at Single-A Myrtle Beach. Hartshorn\u2019s power was on immediate display with High-A South Bend, where he\u2019s slugged 10 home runs, five doubles and two triples with a .279\/.371\/.544 slash line in 40 games.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething I\u2019ve been pretty proud of is being consistent,\u201d Hartshorn said. \u201cI mean, it\u2019s been a little bit of a struggle recently, but just staying consistent, not really riding the wave of the season. Obviously, it\u2019s a long season. This is the most baseball I\u2019ve ever played, but being consistent day in and day out and taking care of what I need to do off the field to be able to stay on the field and be healthy, I think I\u2019ve done a good job of that, and I\u2019m pretty happy with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChicagoChicago Cubs prospect Josiah Hartshorn in the National League dugout prior to the 2026 MLB Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 12, 2026, in Philadelphia. (Meghan Montemurro\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n

Hartshorn\u2019s and McGwire\u2019s journeys to the Futures Game followed a similar path, each opening the season at Myrtle Beach and now with South Bend \u2014 and also as roommates at both affiliates.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never seen him play, and I didn\u2019t really know anything about him, he\u2019s got a great approach at the plate,\u201d McGwire said of Hartshorn to the Tribune. \u201cHe\u2019s never out of it, and he\u2019s always he\u2019s always battling. It\u2019s great to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

McGwire, the Cubs\u2019 No. 29 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, missed all of 2025 due to a partial tear in his elbow. Although the 22-year-old avoided surgery that could have caused him to be out for part of this season, too, he missed important development on the mound. McGwire tried to find ways to stay disciplined and keep improving every day as his patience was tested. He came into this year with one main goal: to stay healthy.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut also not letting health limit my performance,\u201d McGwire added. \u201cLeave it all out on the field, not letting risk of injury limit my performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through 16 games (10 starts) between Myrtle Beach and South Bend, McGwire owns a 2.94 ERA with 20 walks and 67 strikeouts in 52 innings. It all comes back to fastball command for the Cubs\u2019 eighth-round draft pick in 2022. If his fastball command is locked in early, he knows it\u2019s going to be a good day on the mound.<\/p>\n

Standing in the home clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park wasn\u2019t an unfamiliar feeling for McGwire. He spent a lot of time in big-league clubhouses as a kid when his father, legendary slugger Mark McGwire, was a hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals (2010-12) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2013-15), and bench coach for the San Diego Padres (2016-18).<\/p>\n

Mason McGwire, who was born in 2004, remembers always being around a major-league clubhouse with his brother during summers those years, saying, \u201cWe basically grew up in the clubhouse.\u201d It taught him a lot about a professional baseball environment and what he could experience in the coming years.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way guys go about their business, how they handle themselves, like, even the funny guys on the team, there\u2019s just different ways to go about it,\u201d McGwire said. \u201cThere isn\u2019t one way. A professional approach, but you can still be yourself. You can still be you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gaining the perspective of a successful big-league hitter has been valuable during his own pro career. McGwire appreciates how his dad picks up on things a lot of other people don\u2019t, like if his arm slot changes, and offers advice on how his pitches play off each other.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the intimidation factor \u2014 mound presence,\u201d McGwire said. \u201cThings that you can\u2019t really measure how important they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, how would McGwire match up against his dad in his prime?<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I could compete,\u201d he countered.<\/p>\n

\"CalebCaleb Bonemer of the Chicago White Sox on the American League Team in the first inning during the 2026 MLB Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 12, 2026, in Philadelphia. (Emilee Chinn\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

In the winning clubhouse Sunday afternoon, White Sox prospect Caleb Bonemer<\/a> couldn\u2019t stop grinning.<\/p>\n

Bonemer, ranked the Sox\u2019s top prospect by MLB Pipeline, started at third base, going 0-for-2 and handling the lone ball hit his way. He made sure to take in the atmosphere. Although Bonemer played in big-league stadiums during summer ball in high school, he had never experienced one with so many fans in the stands.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt kind of felt like I was playing a video game almost,\u201d Bonemer said. \u201cJust a great environment. I mean, it\u2019s what you dream of, playing in front of a lot of people like that. I felt great out there and really enjoyed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

After he finished his last round of pregame batting practice, former big-leaguer Kenny Lofton approached Bonemer and told him he liked his swing, \u201cso keep doing what you\u2019re doing.\u201d The interaction added to a memorable day for the Sox\u2019s 2024 second-round draft pick.<\/p>\n

As he heads back to Double-A Birmingham, Bonemer\u2019s major-league goals feel a little closer.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll those arms that we saw today were big-league caliber stuff and I felt comfortable in the box, I feel like I saw it pretty decent, so that\u2019s a good feeling to have,\u201d Bonemer said. \u201cI just try to take it a day at a time. Whatever they\u2019ve got for me is good with me. But, yeah, obviously if I play well, that\u2019ll happen. So I just try to focus on that. But playing in an environment like today, yeah, it was a pretty cool moment. You dream about stuff like that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PHILADELPHIA \u2014 Two days shy of the anniversary of being drafted by the Chicago Cubs made Sunday\u2019s appearance…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":930716,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5124],"tags":[217003,960,1271,1274,5386,1818,375306,375307,375308,375309],"class_list":["post-930715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-chicago","tag-caleb-bonemer","tag-chicago","tag-chicago-cubs","tag-chicago-white-sox","tag-il","tag-illinois","tag-josiah-hartshorn","tag-mason-mcgwire","tag-mlb-futures-game","tag-mlb-prospects"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116909374656020084","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/930715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=930715"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/930715\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/930716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=930715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=930715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=930715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}