Following in your father’s footsteps is never easy, especially if your father is a former major league baseball player.
Two sophomores at Colleyville Heritage High School are doing that, plus they're creating names for themselves in the process. Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and second baseman Mason Greer grew up around the game when their fathers played for the Texas Rangers.
Bobby Witt pitched for the Rangers from 1986 to 1992 and again from 1995 into 1998. He was later a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks team that won the 2001 World Series.
“I’ve seen some film of him, which is kind of cool watching your dad on the big stage where every little baseball player wants to be,” said Witt Jr. “It’s influenced me a lot knowing he’s done it and where I want to be one day.”
Mason Greer's father Rusty Greer was an outfielder for Texas from 1994 through 2002 and is also a member of the Rangers Hall of Fame.
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“It was pretty cool watching him on the field every day,” Mason Greer said. “I get to enjoy it myself now.”
Despite their pedigrees, the duo said they don't really feel any pressure trying to live up to expectations that may come with being the sons of former Rangers stars.
“I know I’m kind of living up to an expectation, but I really don’t think about that,” the younger Greer said.
The two sophomores are definitely living up to the hype this season for the Panthers, who are 6-0 going into the Arlington Martin Tournament this week. Mason Greer is committed to play baseball at Auburn and Witt Jr. — an Oklahoma commit — is ranked as the top prospect in the 2019 MLB draft by several publications.
So, what’s the best advice the super-sophomores received from their major league dads?
“Just go out and play as hard as you can every day and leave nothing behind,” Mason Greer said.
Witt Jr. said his father preaches working harder than anyone else on the field and staying humble.
“Where he got is where I ultimately want to go," he said. "He’s giving me the advice that I need in order for me to hopefully be able to make it where he did.”
NBC 5's Todd L. Davis contributed to this report.
