Baseball’s future stars took the field Saturday at Dodger Stadium and in their biggest showcase of the year, they put on a performance fit for Hollywood.
Behind a handful of dominant pitching performances and three home runs — including one by Larry Doby MVP Award winner Shea Langeliers — the American League defeated the National League 6-4 in the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game.
Here’s a look at how each team’s prospects performed in the contest.
BLUE JAYS — Ricky Tiedemann, LHP (No. 3/MLB No. 63): Tiedemann replaced Jack Leiter on the mound in the bottom of the fifth and threw just nine pitches (six strikes) in a perfect inning, getting Jackson Chourio to ground out, Elly De La Cruz to fly out and Darren Baker to line out. Yosver Zulueta, RHP (No. 19): Zulueta also turned in an efficient performance, entering the game with two outs and runners on the corners in the bottom of the second and inducing a Francisco Álvarez groundout on his only pitch — a 96.9 mph fastball. The righty was ultimately credited with the win.
ORIOLES — Gunnar Henderson, SS/3B (No. 2/MLB No. 5): The AL’s starting third baseman and leadoff hitter, Henderson drew a leadoff walk against Bobby Miller in the top of the first. After reaching third on a wild pitch, he came around to score the game’s first run on Dustin Harris’ RBI single. Henderson’s only other plate appearance came in the top of the third, when he reached on a throwing error by Masyn Winn.
RAYS — Taj Bradley, RHP (No. 1/MLB No. 33): Bradley drew the start for the AL and struggled with his command, throwing only 10 of his 21 pitches for strikes. But the righty still managed to work around a double and a walk for a scoreless first inning. Curtis Mead, INF (No. 2/MLB No. 60): Mead opened the game as the AL’s starting second baseman and eventually moved to third. At the plate, he went 0-for-3 with a flyout, a strikeout and a groundout.
RED SOX — Ceddanne Rafaela, OF/SS (No. 26): Rafaela came on as a pinch-hitter for Jasson Domínguez in the top of the fourth and struck out swinging against Jared Shuster. He later struck out against Jose A. Ferrer to end the top of the sixth.
YANKEES — Anthony Volpe, SS (No. 1/MLB No. 8): The AL’s starting shortstop and cleanup hitter, Volpe went 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts. Jasson Domínguez, OF (No. 3/MLB No. 39): The AL’s starting center fielder, Domínguez didn’t get off to the best of starts, striking out in his first at-bat against Bobby Miller and then dropping a fly ball in the bottom of the second that allowed two runs to score. But in the top of the third, the Yankees slugger redeemed himself in a big way, blasting a two-run homer to center that left his bat at 107.5 mph and went an estimated 415 feet. Ken Waldichuk, LHP (No. 5/MLB No. 72): Waldichuk came in and got Jackson Chourio to fly out for the final out of the game, picking up the save in the process.
GUARDIANS — George Valera, OF (No. 2/MLB No. 32): Valera drew the start for the AL in left field and quickly made a nice ranging play in the bottom of the first to rob Robert Hassell III of extra bases. That proved to be his only highlight, as he went 0-for-2 with a strikeout and a groundout. Jhonkensy Noel, 3B/OF (No. 13): Noel replaced Valera in left in the fourth and grounded out softly to short in his only at-bat, stranding runners on first and second with two outs in the top of the fifth.
ROYALS — Alec Marsh, RHP (No. 10): Marsh didn’t see the field.
TIGERS — Dillon Dingler, C (No. 3): Dingler replaced Shea Langeliers behind the plate in the bottom of the fourth. His only at-bat came in the top of the sixth, when he grounded out to second against Antoine Kelly. Wilmer Flores, RHP (No. 14): Flores — brother of the Giants infielder of the same name — faced three batters in the bottom of the seventh, surrendering a double to Pete Crow-Armstrong. He balked with Crow-Armstrong on second, which set up a sac fly for Joey Wiemer.
TWINS — Spencer Steer, 2B/3B (No. 7): Steer replaced Anthony Volpe at short in the bottom of the fourth and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout against Mike Burrows and a flyout against Andrew Abbott. Matt Wallner, OF (No. 8): The AL’s starting right fielder, Wallner struck out against Bobby Miller in his first at-bat, but bounced back with a two-run homer down the right-field line in the top of the third that left his bat at 115.8 mph and went 380 feet.
WHITE SOX — Oscar Colas, OF (No. 2): Colas came on as a pinch-hitter for Gunnar Henderson in the top of the fourth and went 1-for-2 with a flyout and a single off Jose A. Ferrer. His most notable moment came in the bottom of the fifth, when he made a great diving catch in center to rob Darren Baker of a single.
ANGELS — Ky Bush, LHP (No. 4): Bush ran into a bit of trouble in the bottom of the third, but with two outs and runners on the corners, he struck out Masyn Winn to complete a scoreless inning.
ASTROS — Hunter Brown, RHP (No. 1/MLB No. 83): Brown came on in the second and allowed three unearned runs while walking two and striking out one. His fastball touched 99.8 mph and sat around 96. Yainer Diaz, C/1B (No. 14): The AL’s starting designated hitter, Diaz went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles off Jared Shuster and Mike Burrows. He grounded out to short against Eury Pérez and struck out against Erik Miller in his other two at-bats.
ATHLETICS — Shea Langeliers, C (No. 1/MLB No. 31): One of Oakland’s key returns in the Matt Olson trade, Langeliers did it all en route to earning Futures Game MVP honors. The AL’s starting catcher made a quick first impression by throwing out Corbin Carroll trying to steal third in the bottom of the first. Then, after striking out in his first at-bat, Langeliers blasted a solo homer off his former Minor League teammate — Jared Shuster – in the top of the fourth that left his bat at 102.6 mph and went an estimated 392 feet. Denzel Clarke, OF (No. 13): Clarke came on as a defensive replacement for Matt Wallner in the bottom of the fourth and made one of the best plays of the night, crashing into the right-field wall to snag a fly ball for the second out in the bottom of the seventh. At the plate, he went 0-for-1 with a walk.
MARINERS — Emerson Hancock, RHP (No. 5): Out of all pitchers to appear in the 2022 Futures Game, Hancock was perhaps the sharpest of the bunch. Entering in the sixth inning, Hancock struck out the side in a 1-2-3 inning, all three with his sinker. He got D-backs No. 2 prospect Jordan Lawlar swinging at a 96.6 mph pitch for the final out.
RANGERS — Jack Leiter, RHP (No. 1/MLB No. 16): Although his first professional season has been a bit rocky, anyone watching Leiter pitch for the first time Saturday wouldn’t have known any better, as the righty tossed a perfect fourth. The inning included a pair of groundouts by Diego Cartaya and Pete Crow-Armstrong and a flyout by Joey Wiemer. Dustin Harris, 1B/3B/OF (No. 7): The AL’s starting first baseman, Harris turned in one of the best offensive performances of the day, going 2-for-3 with two singles, an RBI, a walk and a stolen base. The slugger scratched across the first run of the game with his RBI single off Bobby Miller in the first.
BRAVES — Jared Shuster, LHP (No. 7): The only pitcher who tossed more than an inning, Shuster came in for Kyle Harrison with two outs in the top of the third, and after giving up a single, he promptly escaped the inning by inducing a groundout. He opened the top of the fourth with a strikeout of Curtis Mead before giving up his only run on Shea Langeliers’ homer. He bounced back to get a flyout and a strikeout of Ceddanne Rafaela to end his outing on a strong note.
MARLINS — Eury Pérez, RHP (No. 1/MLB No. 15): Pérez turned in one of the best pitching performances of the day, striking out one in a perfect second. He threw four of 10 pitches over 98.6 mph while topping out at 99.
METS — Francisco Álvarez, C (No. 1/MLB No. 2): The NL’s starting designated hitter, Álvarez walked on five pitches in his first plate appearance in the bottom of the first and grounded out to second for the final out in the bottom of the second. That came after he turned in a fantastic batting practice that included 10 homers. Mark Vientos (No. 5): Vientos earned the start at first base and went 0-for-2 with a walk.
NATIONALS — Darren Baker, 2B (not ranked among Top 30): Baker replaced Miguel Vargas at second in the top of the fifth, and in his only plate appearance of the game, Oscar Colas robbed him of a single with his fantastic diving grab. Jose A. Ferrer, LHP: Ferrer came in to close the sixth inning, facing two batters. He allowed a single to Colas and got Ceddanne Rafaela to strike out on a nasty changeup.
PHILLIES — Logan O’Hoppe, C (No. 3/MLB No. 88): O’Hoppe came in to catch the final three innings of the game for the NL, working with five pitchers. He went hitless in his lone at-bat. Erik Miller, LHP (No. 10): Miller came on with two outs and a runner on second in the top of the seventh inning and struck out Yainer Diaz on an 88.4 mph slider.
BREWERS — Jackson Chourio, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 37): Chourio came on as a pinch-hitter for Francisco Álvarez in the bottom of the fifth and grounded out softly to the mound on the first pitch he saw from Ricky Tiedemann. He later flew out to right for the final out of the game. Joey Wiemer, OF (No. 3/MLB No. 62): Wiemer entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Robert Hassell III in the bottom of the fourth and flew out to right before picking up an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the seventh. Antoine Kelly, LHP (No. 14): Kelly came on for Mike Burrows to begin the top of the sixth and induced a pair of groundouts on just eight pitches (six strikes) before turning things over to Jose A. Ferrer.
CARDINALS — Jordan Walker, 3B (No. 1/MLB No. 7): The NL’s starting third baseman, Walker finished 0-for-2 with a flyout and a groundout. Masyn Winn, SS (No. 4/MLB No. 89): Winn drew the start at shortstop and showed off his 80-grade arm in unleashing a 100.5 mph throw to first on a groundout in the second inning. That came just days after the Pirates’ Oneil Cruz notched the hardest Major League infield throw in the Statcast era at 97.8 mph. At the plate, Winn went 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts.
CUBS — Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF (No. 3/MLB No. 77): Crow-Armstrong replaced Corbin Carroll in center in the top of the fourth and went 1-for-2 with a double off Wilmer Flores in the seventh.
PIRATES — Mike Burrows, RHP (No. 10): Burrows worked around a single and a walk to toss a scoreless frame in the fifth inning. He induced five swings-and-misses, including a strikeout of Spencer Steer for the second out.
REDS — Elly De La Cruz, 3B/SS (No. 2/MLB No. 49): De La Cruz replaced Jordan Walker at third in the top of the fifth and then flew out to left in his only at-bat in the bottom of the inning. Andrew Abbott, LHP (No. 11): Abbott came on to pitch in the top of the seventh inning, facing three batters. He allowed a single and a stolen base, but got Denzel Clarke on strikes to end his outing.
D-BACKS — Corbin Carroll, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 3): The NL’s starting center fielder, Carroll led off the bottom of the first by legging out a double before getting thrown out trying to steal third. He drew a walk in his only other plate appearance in the bottom of the second. Jordan Lawlar, (No. 2/MLB No. 12): Lawlar replaced Masyn Winn at shortstop in the top of the sixth and struck out against Emerson Hancock in his only at-bat.
DODGERS — Diego Cartaya, C (No. 1/MLB No. 13): The NL’s starting catcher, Cartaya appeared to record the final out in the bottom of the second when he hit a long fly ball to center field, but Jasson Domínguez dropped it at the warning track, allowing two runs to score. Cartaya later grounded out to third to lead off the bottom of the fourth against Jack Leiter. Bobby Miller, RHP (No. 2/MLB No. 26): Miller earned the start for the NL and didn’t disappoint in his future home park. Although he gave up one run on a hit and a walk, he struck out three while topping out at 100.3 mph. Miguel Vargas, 3B (No. 5/MLB No. 70): Vargas joined Cartaya and Miller in the starting lineup at second base and went 0-for-1 with a four-pitch walk and a groundout.
GIANTS — Kyle Harrison, LHP (No. 2/MLB No. 25): Harrison picked up the loss, allowing four runs (one earned) on two hits — both home runs. He also allowed a walk while striking out two in 2/3 of an inning.
PADRES — Robert Hassell III, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 23): The NL’s starting starting right fielder, Hassell III was robbed by George Valera of a potential RBI double in his first at-bat, but he bounced back to drive in a run with a two-out single up the middle in the second.
ROCKIES — Zac Veen, OF (No. 1/MLB No. 22): Veen turned in one of the best all-around performances of the game, going 2-for-3 with a pair of singles and two stolen bases. The starting left fielder did a nice job taking breaking balls the other way for both of his hits, and his two stolen bases came in succession in the bottom of the third, when he swiped second and third.