​Before Saturday, USC had gone 17 years without a player being selected in the first round of the MLB Draft. The last Trojan to achieve that feat was Grant Green, who went on to be drafted by the Oakland Athletics with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2009 MLB Draft. Prospects had long expected left-handed pitcher Mason Edwards to end USC’s first-round drought in the 2026 MLB Draft, but he ultimately did not hear his name called in the opening round. The Athletics selected Edwards with the No. 47 overall pick, which marked the eighth pick of the second round in the 2026 MLB Draft.
As USC’s ace, Edwards stood as a standout in the program’s recent history. He spent his entire three-year collegiate career with the Trojans after graduating from Palisades Charter High School in Los Angeles, where he wasn’t initially projected as a top-round prospect. During his time at USC, Edwards developed into a true superstar on the mound. He left his mark by setting the Big Ten single-season record for strikeouts in conference play with 113, and he led both the conference and the nation with 169 total strikeouts in 2026. His dominant performance also yielded a 2.07 ERA, the best mark in the Big Ten and fifth-best in the nation that season. For his outstanding results, Edwards earned Big Ten Pitcher of the Year honors and was named a First-Team All-Big Ten selection in 2026.
Photographs from the season captured Edwards in action at Boshamer Stadium, where USC faced the North Carolina Tar Heels. In that game, played on June 5, 2026, Edwards pitched for the Trojans, showcasing the talent that had made him a standout throughout his college career. As the 2026 season concluded, Edwards officially began his professional journey, stepping into the Athletics organization and continuing his pursuit of success at the next level.
The widespread reaction to Edwards’s draft outcome highlighted the sense that USC’s latest draft-eligible star had just missed out on the first-round honor many had anticipated. Instead, he joined Oakland in the later stages of the early rounds, signaling a successful transition from college ace to professional pitcher. The move was celebrated by USC Baseball, as expressed in social media posts and coverage from outlets like LA Sports Report, which documented the moment Edwards’ name appeared in the draft results and emphasized the program’s ongoing production of high-caliber pitching talent. For USC fans and the broader baseball community, the narrative underscored how a year of exceptional collegiate performance can yield a respectable, if not first-round, placement in the MLB Draft and set the stage for a promising professional career.
In summary, Mason Edwards’s 2026 season at USC solidified his status as one of the program’s elite pitchers, culminating in a second-round selection by the Oakland Athletics. His development from a overlooked high school recruit to a conference and national leader in strikeouts embodies the trajectory of a student-athlete who maximized his talents on the national stage, even as he fell just shy of the first round. Edwards’s journey from Palisades Charter High School to the professional ranks serves as a notable chapter in USC Baseball history and a reminder that the path to a successful MLB career often unfolds beyond the round in which a player begins their professional journey.