Rodriguez, Casas headline SAL All-Stars
Good luck waiting patiently for some of the matchups bound to take place in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game.
Top Red Sox prospect/Class A Greenville first baseman Triston Casas will lead a loaded Southern Division lineup against a dominant Northern Division pitching staff featuring fourth-ranked Orioles prospect/Delmarva right-hander Grayson Rodriguez, according to the rosters released Tuesday. First pitch at Appalachian Power Park in Charleston, West Virginia, is slated for 7:35 p.m. ET on June 18.
View the SAL All-Star rosters: Southern Division | Northern Division
The Shorebirds sport the league's best record at 43-13 and boast eight All-Stars, the most among the circuit's 14 teams. Joining Rodriguez (6-0, 1.47 ERA) on the Northern Division pitching staff will be No. 27 Orioles prospect Drew Rom (4-0, 1.49 ERA), Zach Matson (4-0, 1.69 ERA) and Ofelky Peralta (4-0, 1.99).
Delmarva shortstop Adam Hall, the 14th-ranked Orioles prospect, should slot somewhere atop the Northern Division lineup because of his .322 average. Greensboro first baseman Mason Martin will bring his league-leading 16 home runs to the middle of the order.
They'll be tasked with outslugging Casas and company. The 19-year-old has heated up after an injury kept him off the field last summer and posted a 1.049 OPS with eight home runs in May. Other notables in the Southern Division lineup include No. 28 Braves prospect Trey Harris -- who leads the league with a .366 average -- and second-ranked Mets prospect Ronny Mauricio (.280, 22 runs, 15 RBIs).
Video: Drive's Casas goes deep
Contenders to start for the Northern Division will be Greenville's Thad Ward (4-2, 2.02 ERA), second-best among active pitchers on the circuit with 71 strikeouts, and Augusta's Seth Corry (1-2, 2.49 ERA), who has 65.
Rosters will be updated over the next two weeks in the event of injuries or promotions.
Joe Bloss is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @jtbloss.