The All-Star Futures Game takes place Sunday (noon ET) as an always-entertaining part of MLB All-Star festivities. If you’re in the Philadelphia area, check it out -- and be sure to arrive early enough for batting practice. It’s always a treat to see the game’s future stars trying to outdo each other.
Just a year ago, the Futures Game included Trey Yesavage, months before emerging as a postseason hero for the Toronto Blue Jays, and Konnor Griffin, on his way to becoming the game’s top prospect before reaching the Pittsburgh Pirates earlier this season.
Here are some of the must-see prospects in this year’s game, with Kiley McDaniel’s latest rankings in parentheses.
Super shortstops
Jesus Made, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (1)Leo De Vries, SS, Athletics (2)Franklin Arias, SS, Boston Red Sox (6)
All three began the season with a lot of hype, and all three have lived up to it. Made just turned 19 in May and is already in Double-A and performing well, especially for his age (.283/.355/.445). He’s producing high exit velocities with good contact rates, once again showing why scouts love his advanced skills at the plate. He has eight home runs, more than all of last season, but still needs to lift the ball more.
De Vries is another teenager in Double-A, putting up similar offensive numbers (.278/.367/.427, 10 home runs). The A’s got him in the Mason Miller trade, and they’re not going to regret that deal.
Arias is a year older and putting up monster numbers at Double-A Portland (.332/.418/.602). Given Boston’s offensive problems in the infield, you can’t help but wonder if he’ll get called up this season.
Most prized pitchers
Seth Hernandez, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates (7)Kade Anderson, LHP, Seattle Mariners (9)Ryan Sloan, RHP, Seattle Mariners (17)
If there’s one player to watch in this game, it might be Hernandez. The Pirates drafted him sixth last year, though some viewed him as the top talent in the draft -- he fell, in part, only because teams are reluctant to draft high school pitchers that early. Hernandez has already moved up to High-A and has struck out 107 batters in 66 innings. He has advanced stuff and feel for pitching, and could probably hold his own right now in the majors.
Anderson was another product of the 2025 draft, going third out of LSU, and has destroyed Double-A. There is no doubt he could pitch right now for the Mariners, although they don’t have room in their six-man rotation.
Sloan was a second-round pick out of high school in 2024 and is already in Double-A -- and while there is more projection required than with Anderson, he might have an even higher ceiling.
2025 prep shortstops
Eli Willits, SS, Washington Nationals (8) JoJo Parker, SS, Toronto Blue Jays (33)Kayson Cunningham, SS, Arizona Diamondbacks (not in top 50)
Willits, Parker and Cunningham were all drafted out of high school and have seen their arrows go up in 2026. Willits was the first pick but has hit for more power than expected while maintaining his status as a potential Gold Glover. Parker went eighth, with a projection of a strong hit tool and power from the left side of the plate. Nothing has changed there.
Cunningham was the 18th selection, and although he’s a year older -- he’s already 20 -- he’s hitting .381 at Single-A Visalia. He’ll have to develop more power (one home run), but the early returns are promising.
The only issue: Getting all six of the shortstops we’ve mentioned into the game for more than one or two at-bats.
Prospects with power
Josue De Paula, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers (18)Ralphy Velazquez, 1B, Cleveland Guardians (31)Charlie Condon, 1B/OF, Colorado Rockies (not in top 50)
Don’t miss these guys in batting practice. De Paula was last year’s Futures Game MVP after homering off Noah Schultz, who is now in the majors with the Chicago White Sox, in a left-on-left battle. Viewed as the Dodgers’ most advanced homegrown hitting prospect since Corey Seager, De Paula is hitting .321 with 15 home runs at Double-A Tulsa.
Velazquez represented a change in Cleveland’s drafting philosophy when the Guardians took him 23rd in 2023, as his upside was all at the plate. They moved him off catcher, where he played in high school, and he has reached Triple-A -- and maybe the big leagues later this season.
Remember Condon? He had a monster season at Georgia in 2024, leading the Rockies to draft him third -- one spot ahead of Nick Kurtz. He had injuries immediately after turning pro and again last season, but is healthy this year and has 20 home runs in Triple-A with an OPS over 1.000.
Pitchers with big fastballs
Liam Doyle, LHP, St. Louis Cardinals (28)Carlos Lagrange, RHP, New York Yankees (not in top 50)Gage Wood, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies (not in top 50)
Doyle is the big name here, the fifth pick last June from Tennessee, where his fastball touched 100 mph. He has struggled with his control at Double-A and has an ERA on the wrong side of 5, but he’ll move quickly once he starts throwing more strikes.
Lagrange got headlines in spring training when he was regularly hitting 101 -- topping out at 103.1. There’s no doubting his fastball, although the Yankees have given him a relief role in Triple-A, suggesting his future is more as a closer than a starter.
Wood had one of the best fastballs in last year’s draft coming out of Arkansas, although he missed time with a shoulder injury before returning and striking out 19 against Murray State in a College World Series game. The Phillies drafted him late in the first round, and he has been touching the upper 90s while reaching Double-A.
