Welcome to the The Show: OA alum David MacKinnon soaking up MLB debut with LA Angels

Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, is a long way from Easton's Frothingham Park, where the Oliver Ames High baseball team calls home.

Batting clean-up behind Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani is a one-of-a-kind experience, too.

That sums up the past week for the 27-year-old Oliver Ames High School grad David MacKinnon, who is soaking up everything that has come his way during his first stint under the bright lights of Major League Baseball.

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A 32nd-round pick by the Los Angeles Angels out of the University of Hartford in the 2017 MLB Entry Draft, MacKinnon was promoted to the bigs last week after several years battling in the minors. Through appearances in seven games for the Angels, the Easton native is batting .273 with three hits and four RBIs in 11 at-bats.

“Thirty-second rounders aren’t supposed to make the big leagues," MacKinnon said. "For me, I was drafted and given a chance to play."

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MacKinnon registered his first hit in the Angels' 5-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on June 22, a single to the right side that scored Luis Rengifo from second with two outs in the seventh inning. After reaching base, he turned to the Angels' dugout with a celebratory clap, a pump of the fist and an ear-to-ear smile.

“That was a dream come true. You go up here and you’re playing against the best players in the world,” said MacKinnon. “I wouldn’t say there’s more pressure, but you definitely try a little bit harder than you really need to. Once you get that first hit, it’s just baseball again. You can get back to who you are.”

Prior to his first hit, MacKinnon started the day with a walk in the first inning and lofted a sacrifice fly to right field with the bases loaded in the fifth to secure the first career RBI. His wife Jordan and three-month-old son Callum were in the stands to capture it all first-hand.

"It's cool that he was born for my debut. He's not going to remember it, but I'll know he was there," MacKinnon said of his son's attendance. Callum was born during spring training in March. "I think it's just unreal. I know he'll appreciate it when he gets older."

A memorable phone call

On Friday, June 17, the Salt Lake City Bees, the Angels' Triple-A affiliate, were in Albuquerque for a six-game series when MacKinnon took his aunt and uncle out to lunch. An incoming call buzzed his phone and the team manager delivered a life-changing instruction.

"Pack up your stuff," MacKinnon recalled. "You're going to Seattle."

That's where the Angels were playing in the midst of a five-game set with the division-rival Mariners. MacKinnon flew in that night, and was activated to start at first base for the series finale on June 18.

“My heart got pounding, obviously. It was just surreal. It was crazy to think that I was going to play in my first big league game," said MacKinnon. "It was a whirlwind.”

The call-up is a landmark of perseverance for the OA alum, as he battled through five minor-league seasons in multiple stops across the country, including Utah, Alabama, Arizona and San Bernardino, CA, among others. In his 56 Triple-A  games with the Salt Lake Bees this season, MacKinnon hit .327 with a career-best 13 homers and 41 RBI.

“I’m extremely happy for him. He paid his dues and it’s good to see him get a chance like this,” said his high school baseball coach Leo Duggan, the OA legend who retired in 2017 after 30 years with the program. “I saw a picture of him playing first next to Ohtani and I’m saying, ‘He’s a long way from Oliver Ames.’”

MacKinnon was a two-sport standout in high school. He not only holds the school record for most career hits (115) for the Tigers, but had a career batting average of .435 as a perennial All-Scholastic and 2012 Brockton Enterprise Player of the Year.

Oh, by the way, he was also an All-American goalkeeper on the soccer pitch. He played both baseball and soccer collegiately at the University of Hartford, where he set the men's soccer team's school record for most shutouts in a season with nine as a freshman in 2013. 

“David was everything you’d want a high school player to be: committed to academics first, committed to his body second and also very dedicated on the field,” his high school soccer coach, OA's John Barata said. “He was very humble and very willing to learn.”

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On the high school diamond, Duggan said MacKinnon played "any place we needed him." He started in center field early in his career, then moved to shortstop, started pitching for a while and also played his major-league position of first base. Currently, the Angels have also tried him out at third, the position MacKinnon mostly played as a college freshman.

“I have great memories from Oliver Ames. Everything about baseball and soccer at OA is awesome,” MacKinnon said. “I have the utmost respect for Leo, coach (Ed) Rollo (a former assistant at OA) and coach Barata. I loved playing every bit of (the) high school sports I got to play. Those are some of the best memories on the sports field ever.”

A 20-game hitting streak and NEIBA (New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association) All-New England Third Team nod as a college senior propelled him to be the No. 955 overall pick to the Angels in the MLB Draft. The lifelong dream of a small-town kid had begun. But it didn't lack its oncoming challenges.

After suffering a torn ACL in 2019, MacKinnon approached the 2021 campaign with a roaring comeback. In preparation for what was his age-26 season, MacKinnon revamped his swing to account for more long-distance power. As a result, he belted 13 homers in back-to-back seasons and his slugging percentage (a statistical indicator of a powerful swing) jumped from .158 in Single-A in 2019 to .474 in AA two years later. In Triple-A this past spring, that number impressively jumped to .633. His presence at the plate became that much more imposing.

“I was always trying to prove people wrong, prove to people that I’m worth being up here and that I can help a big league team win and I’m good enough to play in the big leagues,” MacKinnon said. “I feel like that’s been my whole life in sports. I'll just continue to work hard and outwork others.”

Receiving tips from generational superstars everyday at practice now has benefitted  his game, as well.

“It’s been crazy to watch how Mike (Trout) takes (batting practice) and how he does his work. It’s been awesome to watch Shohei, how he prepares and how good he is. He had eight RBIs on Tuesday, then went out and pitched eight scoreless innings on Wednesday. He’s just unreal at every facet of baseball,” MacKinnon marveled. “I was in Seattle when Mike Trout was on that heater and hit five homers against (the Mariners). That was crazy, too. It’s just a dream come true, honestly. I haven’t stopped smiling all week.”

By way of eight different minor-league teams throughout his five years since being drafted, MacKinnon's current goal is to stay in the majors and carve out a productive career. 

“I just wish him all the best," Duggan said. "I’m so thrilled for him and I’m sure everyone associated with Oliver Ames baseball is too, to show what a small-town kid can do. And it takes a special type of person to do the minor-league route."

“He had great talent, he had heart and he had dedication. Where others may have failed, he continued to persevere and push through," Barata agreed. "I think you couldn’t ask for a better example for your community, your town and our high school, of what it means to stick with what you love doing.”