The All-Star Futures Game is Sunday at Cleveland's Progressive Field, and MiLB.com writers are excited. Below are their picks for the top players, divided by American League and National League rosters, to watch in what will surely be another exciting prospect showcase. MiLB.com writers named 5 players to watch who
The All-Star Futures Game is Sunday at Cleveland's Progressive Field, and MiLB.com writers are excited. Below are their picks for the top players, divided by American League and National League rosters, to watch in what will surely be another exciting prospect showcase. MiLB.com writers named 5 players to watch who are Appalachian League alums.
American League
Wander Franco (Princeton 2018), shortstop, Rays: Franco was born in March 2001, meaning he will easily be the youngest Futures Game participant this season. (Alek Thomas and Nolan Gorman are the next closest, with 2000 birthdays.) That alone would make him a curiosity Sunday in Cleveland. Oh yeah, he also happens to be MLB.com's top overall prospect, so he'll be even more under the microscope. The switch-hitting shortstop has passed every test put in front of him since he signed in July 2017, first at Rookie Advanced Princeton last season and earlier this campaign at Class A Bowling Green, where he hit .318/.390/.506 with 27 extra-base and a 20/30 K/BB ratio in 62 games. He's gone 12-for-26 (.462) with no punchouts in his first seven games at Class A Advanced Charlotte. But he hasn't seen pitching as consistently tough as he'll see from the National League side. If Franco can pick up a couple hits in his biggest game so far, there is no telling how high his stock could go.
Jarred Kelenic (Kingsport 2018), outfielder, Mariners: There are few batters who have been as exciting this season as Kelenic. MLB.com's No. 24 overall prospect came out of the gates firing, notching a 1.100 OPS in April for Class A West Virginia in his full-season debut. And while Kelenic has cooled a bit as he adjusts to Class A Advanced Modesto, the bright lights of Cleveland will be the perfect place for this Midwestern boy to recapture the magic of his first half and show off a plus hit tool from the left side as well as good speed and power. And all before his 20th birthday on July 16.
Deivi Garcia (Pulaski 2017), right-handed pitcher, Yankees: Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2015, the No. 4 Yankees prospect is rising through the system at supersonic speed. Featuring a dominating fastball and curve, Garcia has added a slider to his repertoire that has made him one of the top strikeout pitchers in the Minors this season. The 20-year-old has notched four double-digit punchout performances, punctuated by a Minor League-high 15 over six innings on June 18. He followed that up with nine strikeouts over five hitless innings to spearhead a combined no-hitter for Double-A Trenton on June 24. Garcia is 4-5 with a 3.01 ERA and 114 strikeouts in 68 2/3 innings this season. His 39.3 percent K rate is tops in the Minors, and it should be fun to see how many whiffs he can get in a limited sample Sunday.
National League
Ian Anderson (Danville 2016), right-handed pitcher, Braves: MLB.com's No. 26 overall prospect embraces the opportunity to be part of the Braves legacy in the All-Star Futures Game. "It's awesome," he told MiLB.com. "To follow Kyle Wright [2018] and Mike Soroka [2017], to see what they've done, it's definitely and honor." Hours after he was named to the showcase event, the third-ranked Braves prospect tied the team record with a career-high 14 strikeouts over seven innings as the Double-A Braves no-hit Jackson, 2-0, on June 28. Through 17 starts, the 2016 first-rounder is 6-5 with a 2.91 ERA, which is seventh-best in the Southern League. Opponents are hitting .200 against the 21-year-old right-hander, and he has allowed two or fewer runs in 12 starts while leading the circuit with 113 strikeouts in 86 2/3 innings. Anderson is on some run with Mississippi, but he's yet to face a lineup like the one he'll see from the AL. Even an abbreviated look Sunday could tell us a lot about his recent ascent.
Nolan Gorman (Johnson City 2018), third baseman, Cardinals: Gorman tore through Midwest League pitching back in a monster April, batting .325/.389/.650 with six home runs and 20 RBIs. Though he's cooled over the last two months, missing part of June due to injury, baseball's No. 30 overall prospect just turned 19 in May and the Cardinals have already pushed him to Class A Advanced Palm Beach. His 60-grade power has been rated 70 by some scouts according to MLB Pipeline, and Gorman provides that pop from the left-handed side. Showcase events on All-Star Weekend are nothing new for Gorman, who took part in the MLB All-Star High School Home Run Derby in 2017. If nothing else, his batting practice should be a must-watch at Progressive Field.
