Brian Handzel | July 16th, 2018
The annual Futures Game was played on Sunday, and just as you would expect with 30 of the top 100 prospects playing, according to MLB.com, it did not disappoint as no one thought it would this year.
The starting lineups were announced earlier in the day on Sunday, and this is what we are looking at to start the game:
World
CF – Luis Basabe (AA – Birmingham) Chicago White Sox
SS – Fernando Tatis Jr. (AA – San Antonio) San Diego Padres (#3 Overall Prospect)
LF – Yusniel Diaz (AA – Tulsa) Los Angeles Dodgers (#85 Overall Prospect)
DH – Seuly Matias (A – Lexington) Kansas City Royals
1B Yordan Alvarez (AAA – Fresno) Houston Astros (#51 Overall Prospect)
2B Luis Urias (AA – San Antonio) San Diego Padres (#29 Overall Prospect)
RF – Jesus Sanchez (A – Charlotte) Tampa Bay Rays (#35 Overall Prospect)
C – Miguel Amaya (A – South Bend) Chicago Cubs
3B – Dawel Lugo (AAA – Toledo) Detroit Tigers
SP – Jesus Luzardo (AA – Midland) Oakland Athletics (#20 Overall Prospect)
United States
CF – Jo Adell (A – Inland) Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (#36 Overall Prospect)
SS – Bo Bichette (AA – New Hampshire) Toronto Blue Jays (#7 Overall Prospect)
2B – Brendan Rodgers (AA – Hartford) Colorado Rockies (#6 Overall Prospect)
1B – Nate Lowe (AA – Montgomery) Tampa Bay Rays
DH – Keston Hiura (AA – Biloxi) Milwaukee Brewers (#30 Overall Prospect)
RF – Alex Kirilloff (A – Fort Myers) Minnesota Twins (#67 Overall Prospect)
C – Danny Jansen (AAA – Buffalo) Toronto Blue Jays
LF – Kyle Lewis (A – Modesto) Seattle Mariners (#58 Overall Prospect)
3B – Ke’Bryan Hayes (AA – Altoona) Pittsburgh Pirates (#92 Overall Prospect)
SP – Mitch Keller (AAA – Indianapolis) Pittsburgh Pirates (#12 Overall Prospect)
Pitchers
Out of the 20 pitchers that pitched in this game, Jesus Luzardo was the only pitcher to pitch multiple full innings. Luzardo pitched 2 innings allowing one run and three hits while striking out three.
Mitch Keller was the top-rated pitching prospect in this game, and he proved that he has the stuff. Keller pitched one inning, allowing nothing, not a hit, not a walk, and struck out one, while throwing a total of 14 pitches.
New York Yankees top pitching prospect was a bit shaky. Justus Sheffield pitched 1.1 innings and allowed two hits, one of which was a home run, and two earned runs while only striking out one. Another prospect who was a little shaky on Sunday was Lewis Thorp from the Minnesota Twins. He pitched .2 innings allowing four runs on three hits, two of which were home runs, and struck out one batter.
There were ten out of the twenty pitchers who threw in the game who allowed no runs. Bryan Mata, Jesus Tinoco, Yoan Lopez, Alex Wells, and Jorge Guzman for the World Team and Mitch Keller (#12 overall prospect), Dakota Hudson, Kyle Wright (#25 overall prospect), Dylan Cease (#40 overall prospect), and Luis Ortiz for the United States team.
With the caliber of prospects that these pitchers faced, they did a great job of showcasing their talents.
Hitters
It’s strange to look at, but the only extra-base hits that the World Team were via the home run. It shouldn’t be that strange considering the amount of offense that occurred in the game. The World Team hit a total of four home runs. Seuly Matias hit one in the top of 2nd innings, Luis Basabe hit one in the top of the 3rd inning, and Yusniel Diaz (#85 overall prospect) hit two, on in the top of the 5th inning and one in the top of the 7th inning.
To compete with the four home runs the World Team hit, the United States team had their own firepower, matching the four home runs the World Team hit. Danny Jansen hit a home run in the bottom of the 4th inning, Ke’Bryan Hayes (#92 overall prospect) hit one in the bottom of the 4th inning, Taylor Trammell (#34 overall prospect) hit one in the bottom of the 6th inning, and Peter Alonso (#69 overall prospect) hit a towering blast in the bottom of the 7th inning.
There has NEVER been a home run of 113+ mph with a 40+ degree launch angle measured by @statcast. Until @Mets No. 2 prospect Peter Alonso did this in today's #FuturesGame: https://t.co/TnRERMFTjb pic.twitter.com/QHwdW49QFI
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 16, 2018
To follow up that home run, Taylor Trammell made the most of his two at-bats by also legging out a triple in this game, proving why he is such a high prospect.
Though scores do not matter for this game, the United States defeated the World Team by a score of 10-6. With a total of 16 runs and 22 hits, this was surely a game of offense, and the players definitely showcased their talents whether they are trade bait, or to contribute to their Major League affiliate.
As always make sure to follow me on Twitter @HandzelSports for all the latest Major and Minor League Baseball news!
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