Moncada, Kopech headed to Futures Game
Imagine an infield with three of the game's top dozen prospects playing on the same dirt. Or a parade of some of the Minors' top arms coming out one after another from the same bullpen.
On July 9 in Miami, that dream becomes a reality.
The 2017 Futures Game rosters were announced Thursday with 27 of MLB.com's Top-100 prospects headed to the showcase in Marlins Park, highlighted by No. 1 prospect Yoan Moncada and No. 3 Amed Rosario on the World side and No. 11 Michael Kopech and No. 13 Lewis Brinson on the U.S. squad. In all, 15 top-100 prospects will represent the U.S., while 12 players from MLB.com's list will help constitute the international squad.
Moncada heads back to the Futures Game after becoming the first Cuba native to win MVP honors at last year's contest in San Diego. He has since been traded from the Red Sox to the White Sox and is hitting .280/.377/.455 with 10 homers and 15 steals in 65 games at Triple-A Charlotte.
He'll be just one piece in a talented World Team infield that also boasts Mets shortstop Rosario, who is hitting .315 with an .824 OPS at Triple-A Las Vegas, and No. 12 overall prospect/Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers, who has a .936 OPS and 16 homers at Double-A Portland. No. 27 overall prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Blue Jays) will also play the hot corner at some point in Miami after hitting .309/.398/.457 in his first full season at Class A Lansing.
Don't sleep on the World outfield, either, with top-10 prospects Victor Robles and Eloy Jimenez both slated to play prominent roles on the grass and at the plate.
If the U.S. has an advantage, it might be on the mound with five Top-100 prospects included on its pitching roster. No. 11 prospect Kopech (White Sox) is the highest-ranked of the bunch, thanks to a fastball that regularly touches triple digits and could make for quite a show in a short stint in Miami. No. 58 prospect and A's left-hander A.J. Puk also made for an easy nod after ranking second in the Minors with 106 strikeouts in 68 1/3 innings. Right-handers Jack Flaherty (Cardinals), Brent Honeywell (Rays) and Triston McKenzie (Indians) make up the rest of the U.S.'s top-100 pitching contingent.
Beyond just highly ranked prospects, some of the Minors' top performers were also tipped to take their talents to South Beach. Bauman Home Run Award contenders and Triple-A Lehigh Valley teammates Scott Kingery (20 homers) and Rhys Hoskins (18 homers) both feature in the U.S. infield, next to Minor League hit leader Ryan McMahon (107 hits). D-backs right-hander Jon Duplantier will also be on the U.S. side, thanks to a 1.31 ERA that ranks second among qualified full-season pitchers.
The World ended a six-game winning streak by the U.S. with an 11-3 win last year in San Diego. The U.S. leads the all-time series, 11-7, since the Futures Game began in 1999.
Here are the complete Futures Game rosters announced Thursday:
2017 U.S. Roster
| PITCHERS | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Beau Burrows | DET | AA | R | R | 6-2 | 200 | 9/18/1996 | Fort Worth, TX |
| Jon Duplantier | ARI | A+ | L | R | 6-4 | 225 | 7/11/1994 | Newark, DE |
| Jack Flaherty | STL | AAA | R | R | 6-4 | 205 | 10/15/1995 | Burbank, CA |
| Foster Griffin | KC | AA | R | L | 6-3 | 200 | 7/27/1995 | Orlando, FL |
| Jimmy Herget | CIN | AAA | R | R | 6-3 | 170 | 9/9/1993 | Tampa, FL |
| Brent Honeywell | TB | AAA | R | R | 6-2 | 180 | 3/31/1995 | Carnesville, GA |
| Michael Kopech | CWS | AA | R | R | 6-3 | 205 | 4/30/1996 | Mount Pleasant, TX |
| Triston McKenzie | CLE | A+ | R | R | 6-5 | 165 | 8/2/1997 | Brooklyn, NY |
| A.J. Puk | OAK | AA | L | L | 6-7 | 220 | 4/25/1995 | Cedar Rapids, IA |
| Tanner Scott | BAL | AA | R | L | 6-2 | 220 | 7/22/1994 | Mogadore, OH |
| CATCHERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Zack Collins | CWS | A+ | L | R | 6-3 | 220 | 2/6/1995 | Pembroke Pines, FL |
| Chance Sisco | BAL | AAA | L | R | 6-2 | 195 | 2/24/1995 | Corona, CA |
| INFIELDERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Brian Anderson | MIA | AA | R | R | 6-3 | 185 | 5/19/1993 | Edmond, OK |
| Bo Bichette | TOR | A | R | R | 6-0 | 200 | 3/5/1998 | Orlando, FL |
| Nick Gordon | MIN | AA | L | R | 6-0 | 160 | 10/24/1995 | Avon Park, FL |
| Rhys Hoskins | PHI | AAA | R | R | 6-4 | 225 | 3/17/1993 | Sacramento, CA |
| Scott Kingery | PHI | AAA | R | R | 5-10 | 180 | 4/29/1994 | Phoenix, AZ |
| Ryan McMahon | COL | AAA | L | R | 6-2 | 185 | 12/14/1994 | Yorba Linda, CA |
| Brendan Rodgers | COL | AA | R | R | 6-0 | 180 | 8/9/1996 | Winter Park, FL |
| Nick Senzel | CIN | AA | R | R | 6-1 | 205 | 6/29/1995 | Atlanta, GA |
| OUTFIELDERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Lewis Brinson | MIL | AAA | R | R | 6-3 | 195 | 5/8/1994 | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
| Derek Fisher | HOU | AAA | L | R | 6-3 | 205 | 8/21/1993 | Lebanon, PA |
| Corey Ray | MIL | A+ | L | L | 5-11 | 185 | 9/22/1994 | Chicago, IL |
| Bryan Reynolds | SF | A+ | S | R | 6-3 | 205 | 1/27/1995 | Baltimore, MD |
| Kyle Tucker | HOU | AA | L | R | 6-4 | 190 | 1/17/1997 | Tampa, FL |
2017 World Roster
| PITCHERS | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Domingo Acevedo | NYY | AA | R | R | 6-7 | 240 | 3/6/1994 | Villa Los Almacigos, D.R. |
| Yadier Alvarez | LA | A+ | R | R | 6-3 | 175 | 3/7/1996 | Matanzas, Cuba |
| Jaime Barria | LAA | AA | R | R | 6-1 | 210 | 7/18/1996 | Panama City, Panama |
| Luis Escobar | PIT | A | R | R | 6-1 | 155 | 5/30/1996 | Cartagena, Colombia |
| Tayron Guerrero | MIA | AA | R | R | 6-8 | 210 | 1/9/1991 | Bocachica, Colombia |
| Jonathan Hernandez | TEX | A+ | R | R | 6-2 | 175 | 7/6/1996 | Santiago, D.R. |
| Jairo Labourt | DET | AA | L | L | 6-4 | 205 | 3/7/1994 | Azua, D.R. |
| Cal Quantrill | SD | A+ | L | R | 6-2 | 165 | 2/10/1995 | Port Hope, ON, Canada |
| Mike Soroka | ATL | AA | R | R | 6-5 | 225 | 8/4/1997 | Calgary, AB, Canada |
| Thyago Vieira | SEA | AA | R | R | 6-2 | 210 | 7/1/1993 | Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| CATCHERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Francisco Mejia | CLE | AA | S | R | 5-10 | 180 | 10/27/1995 | Bani, D.R. |
| Tomas Nido | NYM | AA | R | R | 6-0 | 205 | 4/12/1994 | Oviedo, FL (Puerto Rico) |
| INFIELDERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Yordan Alvarez | HOU | A+ | L | L | 6-5 | 225 | 6/27/1997 | Las Tunas, Cuba |
| Rafael Devers | BOS | AA | L | R | 6-0 | 195 | 10/24/1996 | Sanchez, D.R. |
| Mauricio Dubon | MIL | AAA | R | R | 6-0 | 160 | 7/19/1994 | San Pedro Sula, Honduras |
| Lucius Fox | TB | A | S | R | 6-1 | 175 | 7/2/1997 | Nassau, Bahamas |
| Vladimir Guerrero Jr. | TOR | A | R | R | 6-1 | 200 | 3/16/1999 | Montreal, QC, Canada |
| Yoan Moncada | CWS | AAA | S | R | 6-2 | 205 | 5/27/1995 | Abreus, Cuba |
| Josh Naylor | SD | A+ | L | L | 6-0 | 225 | 6/22/1997 | Mississauga, ON, Canada |
| Amed Rosario | NYM | AAA | R | R | 6-2 | 190 | 11/20/1995 | Santo Domingo Centro, D.R. |
| OUTFIELDERS | ||||||||
| PLAYER | ORG | LEVEL | B | T | HT | WT | BIRTHDATE | BIRTHPLACE |
| Ronald Acuna | ATL | AA | R | R | 6-0 | 180 | 12/18/1997 | La Guaira, Venezuela |
| Estevan Florial | NYY | A | L | R | 6-1 | 185 | 11/25/1997 | Port Au Prince, Haiti |
| Eloy Jimenez | CHC | A+ | R | R | 6-4 | 205 | 11/27/1996 | Santo Domingo Centro, D.R. |
| Victor Robles | WAS | A+ | R | R | 6-0 | 185 | 5/19/1997 | Santo Domingo Este, D.R. |
| Alex Verdugo | LA | AAA | L | L | 6-0 | 205 | 5/15/1996 | Tucson, AZ (Mexico) |
Sam Dykstra is a reporter for MiLB.com. Follow and interact with him on Twitter, @SamDykstraMiLB.