3 Tigers prospects named to MLB Futures Game rosters

The 2019 MLB Futures Game rosters have been announced, and three Detroit Tigers prospects will be involved. Righthander Matt Manning, who pitched in the 2018 Futures Game, will be joined by catcher Jake Rogers and infielder Isaac Paredes on the American League roster.

Manning, then pitching at High-A Lakeland, gave up two runs on four hits in 1 ¹⁄₃ innings at the 2018 Futures Game, held at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. He struck out two and did not walk a batter, and the U.S. Futures beat the World club by a 10-6 margin.

Manning has since established himself as one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball. He has a 2.60 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 86 ²⁄₃ innings at Double-A Erie this year, and is now ranked as high as the No. 27 prospect in baseball (by Baseball America). He ranks just outside the top 30 at MLB Pipeline, and will almost certainly be even higher next spring after others above him on the list graduate or shuffle around.

Rogers has missed out on top-100 status, but is having a solid season all the same. He hit .302/.429/.535 with five home runs in 28 games at Double-A Erie, earning a promotion to Triple-A. He started out hot for the Mud Hens with three home runs in his first eight games, but fell into a long slump after that. He has turned things around since then, however, and currently holds an .872 OPS over the past two weeks. Overall, he has batted .220/.304/.460 with seven home runs in 112 plate appearances in a Toledo uniform.

Paredes has had one of the quieter seasons among the Tigers’ top prospects, but his numbers are still impressive. He has hit .259/.350/.363 in 303 plate appearances at Double-A Erie, a feat made all the more impressive considering he is one of just three players in the Eastern League in their age-20 season or younger. Paredes has also started to pick things up recently, with an .829 OPS in the past two weeks.

The Tigers might have landed another prospect on the AL roster were it not for Casey Mize’s recent shoulder injury. The No. 1 overall pick in 2018, Mize has enjoyed one of the best seasons of any prospect in the minor leagues, and is considered a top-10 prospect in all of baseball by multiple outlets. Mize is 8-0 with a 0.92 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 78 innings across two minor league levels this year, in case you wanted to read just how bonkers his numbers are again.

Who else will be there?

Both rosters are understandably packed, but the American League might have the edge here. Tampa Bay’s Wander Franco, now the No. 1 prospect in baseball, is on the team, along with top Angels prospect Jo Adell. Manning will be joined by Blue Jays righthander Nate Pearson, Kansas City’s Brady Singer, and Rays lefthander Brendan McKay on the pitching side.

The National League roster is also formidable. Lefthander Mackenzie Gore and righthanders Sixto Sanchez, Luis Patiño, Dustin May, and Ian Anderson highlight an absolutely stacked pitching staff, while infielders Alec Bohm, Carter Kieboom, and Nolan Gorman round out the offense.

The Futures Game will be held at Progressive Field on Sunday, July 7, 2019. Previously, the rosters were comprised of U.S.-born players on one team and international prospects on another. This year is the first time that the prospects are split by their respective American and National League affiliates.