Futures Game Things to Watch For

I love the Futures Game and it's one of the events that I always look forward to. This year in St. Louis, Jose Oquendo- the man who can play nine positions, and manage Puerto Rico in the WBC, will oppose Ozzie Smith- The Wizard of Oz.

Here are some guys to watch tommorrow-

Madison Baumgartner, pitcher San Francisco Giants. The Giants could have the next version of the Atlanta Braves big four with Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Johnathan Sanchez and Baumgartner, who is a left hand pitcher and is a combined 9-2 with a 1.66 ERA between A and AA this year.

Kyle Drabek, pitcher Philadelphia Phillies. Yes, this is former Cy Young Award winner Kyle Drabek's son, who apparently is a chip off of the old block with a 9-1 record and 110 strikeouts in 108 innings between A and AA. Possible trade bait for Roy Halladay? We'll find out soon.

Mat Latos, pitcher San Diego Padres. Great frame at 6'6" 225, and has great numbers at 8-1 with 73 Strikeouts in 72.1 innings and an ERA of 1.37 between A and AA. This guy might get a look at the end of the year for the rebuilding Padres.

Brad Lincoln, pitcher Pittsburgh Pirates. USM fans may remember this guy from the University of Houston. His won loss record is hardly stellar at 2-6, but he has a nifty ERA of 2.69 between AA and AAA. Another guy who could get a look in September for a rebuilding team.

Brian Matusz, pitcher Baltimore Orioles. Watch out for the Orioles in the coming years, they're adding some talent, and this guy could be their ace in a few years. He's 6'5" 200 pounds and is left handed, and on top of that he has been dominating with an 8-2 record, 107 strikeouts in 93 innings, and an ERA of 1.65 between A and AA. He's been better in AA with an ERA of 0.34.

Tyler Flowers, catcher Chicago White Sox. I saw this guy absolutely launch a ball over the berm at Trustmark Park. He has 13 home runs, 43 RBI's and a .302 average at AA, and could be up just in time to replace A J Pierzynski. He's also 6'4" and 245.

Jason Castro, catcher Houston Astros. Former Stanford catcher has 9 home runs, 51 RBI's, and a .304 average between A and AA. He also may get a chance to learn from Ivan Rodriguez.

Pedro Alvarez, third baseman, Pittsburgh Pirates. Former Vanderbilt superstar is the Pirates third baseman of the future and has 17 home runs, 63 RBI's and is hitting .241 between A ball and AA. May get a long look at coming up in September and in spring training next year. Could be a very valuable left handed bat in the near future.

Chris Carter, first baseman, Oakland A's. Right handed first baseman with great size at 6'4" 225, and great stats with 13 home runs 61 RBI's, a .303 average, and 8 stolen bases at AA.

Brett Wallace, third baseman, St. Louis Cardinals. This guy is a natural hitter from Arizoza State. He has 11 home runs, 35 RBI's, and a .294 average between AA and AAA. He's also a left handed hitter who will likely replace Troy Glaus in the very near future. Assuming Glaus comes back, of course.

Jemile Weeks, second baseman, Oakland A's. Yes, this is Brewers infielder Rickie Weeks brother. He's certainly holding his own in the family with a .313 average, 7 home runs, and 25 RBI's in A ball in only 32 games.

Eric Young, second baseman, Colorado Rockies. This is "EY"'s son from Baseball Tonight and also a former Rockie second baseman. He may help the Rockies during the pennant stretch as he is at AAA and hitting a solid .294 with 5 home runs, 31 RBI's and an eye-popping 48 stolen bases.

Chris Heisley, outfielder, Cincinnati Reds. His numbers are some of the best of this year's group at .350 with 16 home runs, 53 RBI's and 15 stolen bases. Appropriately, he is from Messiah College.

Jason Heyward, outfielder, Atlanta Braves. The current M-Brave, who I mentioned a few times on this blog, is on this team and may be the Braves right fielder of the future. He's 6'4" 220 and has 10 home runs, 38 RBI's, and a .302 average.

Desmond Jennings, outfielder, Tampa Bay Rays. Typical Rays player- 6'2" 180 with 7 home runs, 41 RBI's, a .313 average, and 31 stolen bases in AA. The Rays will have the fastest outfield in baseball with BJ Upton, Carl Crawford, and Jennings.

Chia-Jen Lo, pitcher, Houston Astros. Tiawanese right handed relief pitcher has 48 strikeouts in only 37.2 inning.

Francisco Samuel, pitcher, St. Louis Cardinals. Dominican relief pitcher has 40 strike outs in 34 innings in AA.

Leyson Septimo, pitcher, Arizona Diamondbacks. A left handed relief pitcher who has 48 strikeouts in 39.1 innings in AA.

Junichi Tazawa, pitcher, Boston Red Sox. The latest big time pitcher from Japan that the Red Sox had to import has been holding his own in AA with an 8-5 record 79 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.79.

Jesus Montero, catcher, New York Yankees. From Vanezuela, is a 6'4" 225 pound backstop who has 13 home runs, 52 RBI's, and a .330 average and could be Jorge Posada's replacement.

Barbaro Canizares, first baseman, Atlanta Braves. Cuban defector has already played in four games this year in the Big Leagues and may be the Braves first baseman of the near future. At AAA, he's hitting .323 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI's.

Alcides Escobar, Shortstop, Milwaukee Brewers. He's a shortstop that is blocked by JJ Hardy right now, but I'm thinking that the Brewers can find a spot for him since he is hitting .296 and has 30 stolen bases at AAA.

Brett Lawrie, Second baseman, Milwaukee Brewers. This is one of several Canadians in the Future's Game. He has 9 home runs 44 RBI's, a .268 average and 14 stolen bases in A ball.

Alex Liddi, Third baseman, Seattle Mariners. This is the first Italian in the Futures Game, and he is tearing up A ball with 20 home runs 73 RBI's, and a .351 average. He also 7 stolen bases.

Luis Durango, Outfielder, San Diego Padres. Very similar to his Panamanian counterpart Omar Moreno, this is a leadoff type hitter who is hitting .288 with 28 stolen bases in AA.

Kyeong Kang, Outfielder, Tampa Bay Rays. This is a Korean, who's numbers don't really blow me away, but I think his name is pretty cool. He has 2 home runs, 22 RBI's and is hitting a repectable .285 in A ball.

Rene Tosoni, Outfielder, Minnesota Twins. Imagine this, another Canadian on the Twins who is going to be a solid big league player. His numbers are just that- solid-10 home runs, 51 RBI's, .278 average, and 6 stolen bases.