Sometimes, the future is closer than you think.
MLB’s All-Star week festivities begin in earnest on Saturday with the annual Futures Game, and some of the best prospects in baseball have gathered for the seven-inning exhibition at Dodger Stadium. They’re not household names like the players who will take the field for Tuesday night’s main event, but some of these players are likely on the cusp of their major league breakthroughs.
Last year’s Futures Game in Denver featured many of this year’s top rookies, such as the Seattle Mariners’ Julio Rodríguez and the Kansas City Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. Twelve months later, the 21-year-old Rodriguez is participating in the Home Run Derby on Monday and the All-Star Game on Tuesday.
The Futures Game has showcased many of the game’s best over the years. Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw, Mookie Betts, Jose Altuve, Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander, Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole, Ronald Acuña Jr., Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Fernando Tatis Jr. are just some of the household names who have played in it in the past (some more than once).
Saturday’s game could provide a glimpse of players who will be standouts in the 2023 rookie class. Five of the top 10 players currently on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list – including second-rated New York Mets catching prospect Francisco Álvarez – are on the rosters for the 4 p.m. game (streaming live on Peacock).
Arizona Diamondbacks outfield prospect Corbin Carroll (No. 3), Baltimore Orioles infield prospect Gunnar Henderson (No. 5), St. Louis Cardinals third base prospect Jordan Walker (No. 7) and Yankees shortstop prospect Anthony Volpe (No. 8) are the other participants ranked in the latest top 10.
Three promising Dodgers prospects – 20-year-old catcher Diego Cartaya (No. 13), 22-year-old outfielder Miguel Vargas (No. 70) and hard-throwing 23-year-old pitcher Bobby Miller (No. 26) – are on the National League roster, while Angels left-handed pitching prospect Ky Bush is on the American League squad. The Yankees are the only other team with three prospects in the game.
For a few of these farmhands, the game is a chance to play close to home. Toronto pitching prospect Ricky Tiedemann (no. 63) is a product of Lakewood High and Golden West College, and the 19-year-old is among the youngest players on either roster. Chicago Cubs outfield prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong (No. 77) is a former Harvard-Westlake standout, and Minnesota Twins infield prospect Spencer Steer is a former Millikan High standout who is enjoying a career year at Triple-A.
Former Huntington Beach High star Nick Pratto was on the original rosters, but Kansas City promoted the first base prospect ahead of its weekend series in Toronto.
The Miami Marlins’ Eury Pérez is the highest-ranked pitching prospect on either roster, the 19-year-old Double-A right-hander checking in at No. 15.
A pair of players with famous fathers will also take the field: Texas Rangers pitching prospect Jack Leiter (No. 16), son of former big league pitcher Al Leiter, and Washington Nationals second base prospect Darren Baker, son of Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker. Some baseball fans haven’t seen Baker, 23, since he was memorably scooped up by the San Francisco Giants’ J.T. Snow to save him from a potential home plate collision during Game 5 of the 2002 World Series against the Angels.
The coaching staffs for the Futures Game have a definite L.A. flavor. Mike Scioscia, who spent 19 years managing the Angels and all 13 seasons of his playing career as the Dodgers’ catcher, will manage the NL squad with former Dodgers Kenny Landreaux (bench), Dan Haren (pitching), Shawn Green (hitting) and Eric Davis (first base) among his coaches.
The American League team will be led by three-time All-Star and 2007 NL MVP Jimmy Rollins, who spent the 2015 season with the Dodgers. Jerry Manuel (bench), Edwin Jackson (pitching) and Adrián Beltré (hitting) are part of Rollins’ coaching staff.
The Futures Game will be followed by the five-inning All-Star Celebrity Softball Game at 7:15 p.m.
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