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MLB Futures Game 2018: Rosters, Top Prospects, Time and TV Schedule
July 13, 2018
Before the 2018 Major League Baseball All-Stars enter Washington, D.C., the future stars of the sport will be on display at Nationals Park.
Twenty-five prospects each reside on the USA and World rosters for Sunday's MLB Futures Game, in which players like Alfonso Soriano, Jose Reyes, Joey Gallo and Kyle Schwarber starred in the past.
Of the 50 participants, 27 are on the MLB Top 100 prospects list, with No. 3 prospect Fernando Tatis Jr. being the top-rated player on either roster.
Torii Hunter, who is a special assistant to the general manager in Minnesota, takes charge of the USA squad, while future Hall of Famer David Ortiz is the manager of the World squad.
2018 Futures Game Information
Date: Sunday, July 15
Time: 4 p.m. ET
TV: MLB Network
Rosters
MLB Communications @MLB_PRRosters for the 2018 @SIRIUSXM All-Star Futures Game include 15 first round Draft picks. The World roster represents 8 different countries & territories outside the U.S. The 20th Futures Game will be played on Sunday, 7/15 at Nationals Park at 4:00 pm ET on @MLBNetwork. https://t.co/mzdAN3Gbca
Top Prospects To Watch
Fernando Tatis Jr., SS, World (San Diego Padres)
The top-rated prospect in the Futures Game carries plenty of MLB pedigree.
Fernando Tatis Jr., who is the son of 11-year MLB veteran Fernando Tatis, plays for Double-A San Antonio in the San Diego Padres system, but it won't be long before he is gracing a Major League diamond with his talents.
The 19-year-old Tatis Jr., who is in his third professional season, is hitting .290 with 15 home runs and 42 RBI in the Texas League.
In addition to impressing big-league personnel on an individual level, Tatis Jr. could begin to form chemistry with fellow Padres infield prospect Luis Urias, who is at Triple-A El Paso and also on the World roster.
No matter what he does in the Futures Game, the shortstop should be in San Diego sooner rather than later because of the improvement he's shown at the plate.
Tatis Jr. is on the way to eclipsing most of his offensive stat totals from a year ago, with his 172 total bases, 97 hits and 22 doubles among the impressive numbers.
Brendan Rodgers, SS, USA (Colorado Rockies)
The top infielder on the USA roster is no slouch himself, as Colorado's Brendan Rodgers enters as the No. 6 prospect in baseball.
Just like Tatis Jr., Rodgers is honing his trade at Double-A, as he plays for the Hartford Yard Goats of the Eastern League.
Rodgers, who was also named to the Eastern League All-Star team, is one home run and six RBI away from matching his totals from a year ago.
The No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 MLB draft projects as a middle infielder in the majors since Nolan Arenado occupies third base on the Colorado roster.
Since 2018 is his first season at Double-A, Rodgers might not break through into the majors right away in 2019, but if his progression continues at the plate, he should join Tatis Jr. in the NL West at some point in the next 12 months.
Hunter Greene, P, USA (Cincinnati Reds)
It's hard not to get excited about Hunter Greene's potential, even though he's 18 and in his first full professional season.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 MLB draft has just 19 starts to his name, 16 of which came this season, but he's impressed during his time with the Single-A Dayton Dragons.
After getting off to a slow start, Greene's improved by the month, and he had his best month yet in June, as he recorded a 2.33 ERA and 31 strikeouts while giving up 21 hits in five starts, which led to being named the co-Minor League pitcher of the month in the Reds organization:
In his first two July starts, Greene conceded seven hits against 38 batters while striking out 13.
While Greene is one of the newer names in the minor leagues, he carries plenty of hype after he was taken second overall last summer by the Reds.
Although 67.2 innings on the mound is a small sample size to judge a prospect's career, the improvement Greene's made month-by-month at Single-A is worthy of praise.
Jesus Luzardo, P, World (Oakland Athletics)
Jesus Luzardo's trajectory toward the major leagues sped up this season when he was quickly promoted to the Double-A Midland Rockhounds after three starts with the Single-A Stockton Ports.
The top prospect in the Oakland Athletics organization went 2-1 in Stockton before moving up to the Texas League, where he's put together a 6-3 mark with a 2.30 ERA and 0.96 WHIP.
The 20-year-old lefthander, who was born in Peru, possesses a solid collection of pitches, and he's only gotten better as the season's moved on.
Luzardo is one of the hottest pitchers in the minors, as he hasn't given up an earned run in his last five starts, and he recorded a career-high 10 strikeouts in his last outing July 9.
Although he is tearing up the Texas League, Luzardo won't be rushed to the majors, as he needs to work on producing longer outings over the next year or two, as he's only thrown six innings once in his career.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
Statistics obtained from Baseball Reference and MLB.com