When former Athletics star Mark McGwire resurged as a hitting coach despite PED-tainted past

Mark McGwire’s legacy was marred by his association with performance-enhancing drugs.

Many wondered if McGwire would ever make his way back to the mound as a coach. After all, he had spent a long time away from the game and his reputation had been damaged.

Mark McGwire’s stint as an MLB coach started with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2010. During McGwire's three seasons serving as a Cardinals hitting coach, he led a brilliant offensive team in the National League. The Cardinals were second in runs scored.

In 2012, in order to be closer to his family, McGwire took up a coaching contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

McGwire joined the San Diego Padres as the bench coach in 2015 and worked there until 2018.

David Freese was a rookie in 2016, a year after McGwire started coaching for the team. He claimed that McGwire’s confession about his steroid use was clear proof of his dedication to the sport.

He said that although claims can be made that McGwire confessed to his acts in order to make his way back to the game, his poignancy showcased his regret.

“Going through stuff like that, being a man about it, it shows how much he loves the game. He doesn’t have to do this. He’s got plenty of money. He loves being in the game and he loves the aspect of helping people, and that’s what this is all about.”

Mark McGwire’s prolific home run era in MLB

Batting coach Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals watches from the dugout during the Major League Baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on April 12, 2011, in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

McGwire registered 583 home runs during his MLB career thereby making his name as one of the most prolific home run hitters in the history of MLB.

At the time of his retirement, he was ranked fifth among the MLB's best hitters. McGwire led the majors in homers through five different seasons.

His acute precision as a batter made him produce a .394 on-base percentage (OBP) during his career. He led the majors in bases on balls twice. McGwire holds a career record for at-bats per home run ratio (10.6).

McGwire played for the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. He went on to win two World Series Championships - one while he was a player with Oakland in 1989 and another while he was coaching the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011.