Baseball’s top prospects took the field in the 2025 Futures Game at Truist Park on Saturday afternoon. The National League came back to beat the American League in the seven-inning affair (NL 4, AL 2), which is MLB’s annual showcase of the next generation of players. The NL now leads the all-time series 4-1-1. The Futures Game used a USA vs. World format from 1999-2018, during which USA had a 13-7 advantage.
The AL took an early 2-0 lead thanks to some good ol’ fashioned small ball. They scored runs on an RBI ground out and a two-strike sacrifice fly. The NL came back and took control of the game with the long ball when Dodgers outfielder Josue De Paula clubbed a go-ahead three-run home run off White Sox lefty Noah Schultz. The NL tacked on an insurance run and cruised to its third straight Futures Game win.
Here are four takeaways from the 2025 Futures Game at Truist Park.
1. De Paula showed off his power and won MVP
Josue De Paula, the 13th best prospect in baseball at midseason, made Truist Park look small Saturday. His go-ahead three-run homer traveled 416 feet and left his bat at 108.5 mph. This is a recently turned 20-year-old player turning around a left-on-left slider in a big league ballpark. In other words, it’s awfully impressive.
The 108.5 mph exit velocity was almost 3 mph harder than any other ball hit in the Futures Game. Only four other batted balls registered at 100 mph, which is not a reflection of the talent. It’s a reminder that these are very young players who are still developing and getting stronger.
Not surprisingly, the three-run homer earned De Paula the Larry Doby Award as the Futures Game MVP. He’s hitting .265/.409/.425 with 10 home runs in 78 games of High Class-A ball this season. He is more than two years younger than the average player in the Midwest League.
2. There was a switch-pitcher
Mariners prospect Jurrangelo Cijntje, a true switch-pitcher and one of the top pitching prospects in the game, struck out two in a scoreless inning. He fanned Brewers infielder Jesús Made right-handed, turned around to get De Paula to fly out left-handed, then went back to right-handed against Diamondbacks infielder LuJames Groover and Marlins catcher Joe Mack.
Here is the switch-pitching Cijntje in action:
It should be noted Cijntje does not exclusively pitch left-handed to lefties. He picks his spots based on matchups. In fact, he’s faced more left-handed hitters as a righty (78) than as a lefty (30) in the minors this year, and he fanned the lefty hitting Mack as a righty in the Futures Game.
Cijntje hit 98.7 mph with his heater as a right-hander in Saturday’s game. In 56 ⅓ minor-league innings this season, the Mississippi State product has a 4.94 ERA with 63 strikeouts.
3. Lombard created a run with his legs
George Lombard Jr. created the game’s first run with his speed. The Yankees shortstop prospect drew a walk against Marlins lefty Thomas White, stole second base, hustled to third on an infield single, then came home on White Sox outfielder Braden Montgomery‘s tapper back to the mound. Here’s the steal.
Lombard, 20, added a double later in the game. He’s hitting .239/.382/.356 with three home runs and 25 stolen bases in 81 games between High Class-A and Double-A this year. We ranked him as the 21st best prospect in baseball last month.
4. There was an injury scare
Unfortunately, injuries are part of the game, and Pirates infielder Konnor Griffin had to exit the Futures Game after taking a 97.4 mph fastball to the right hand/wrist during a check swing. Astros righty Alimber Santa delivered the pitch.
Good news though: Griffin is fine. His father, Belhaven University coach Kevin Griffin, confirmed his son is OK not too long after the hit by pitch. Griffin was back in the dugout by game’s end.
Griffin was the No. 9 overall pick in last year’s draft. The 19-year-old is hitting .327/.400/.521 with 13 homers and 41 steals in 75 Single-A games this season. He is emerging as one of the top prospects in the game.
The Futures Game is the start of the All-Star break festivities. Day 1 of the two-day 2025 MLB Draft will take place Sunday night in Atlanta, then there will be the Home Run Derby on Monday and the All-Star Game itself on Tuesday. The Home Run Derby and All-Star Game will also take place at Truist Park.
This news was originally published on this post .
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