FanGraphs was at the Futures Game in Arlington on Saturday. In total, 16 pitchers appeared in the seven-inning game. The following are some quick notes on every pitcher who toed the rubber during All-Star weekend’s premier prospect event. Obviously one game isn’t enough on its own to move the needle significantly for any of these guys — they all have a large body of work that can better inform our evaluations — but it’s useful to see whose stuff ticks up when they’re in an environment like the Futures Game and get to let it eat in a shorter burst than they’re accustomed to.
National League
Chase Dollander, Colorado Rockies: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
FB: 95-97 CB: 75-76 CH: 89-90
Dollander faced five batters in his inning of work, four of whom were lefties. Dollander sat in his usual fastball range (95-97 mph) but didn’t throw his slider. Instead, he opted for throwing a few curveballs and fading changeups, both of which he had difficulty landing in the zone. His fastball command was spotty, but the pitch flashed notable carry up in the zone.
Noble Meyer, Miami Marlins: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
FB:91-95 CB: 78 SL: 82-84 CH: 84-86
Meyer’s fastball showed life with late tailing movement right before entering the zone, and he had feel for landing his secondary mix for strikes as well. Meyer showed both a short tilting version of his slider as well as a two-planer with greater depth, with both shapes having width to them. Meyer also mixed in a slurve-shaped curveball at 78 mph that he used to steal a strike in an 0-0 count. The changeup showed significant lateral fade and he mirrored his fastball arm shape when throwing it.
Brandon Sproat, New York Mets: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
FB: 97-99 SL: 84-86 CH: 90
Sproat’s fastball really ticked up in this short burst appearance, sitting in the upper 90s with above-average life. He flashed a couple of plus sliders that had width to them before the pitch’s late, short-tilting finish. Sproat wasn’t overly precise with his locations due to his lengthy arm path, and the unique setting likely had him a little more amped than usual, but his pure stuff was among the best in the Futures Game this year.
Thomas White, Miami Marlins: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
FB: 94-95 CB: 79-82 CH: 85-87
The 19-year-old had some difficulty throwing strikes on Saturday, walking three hitters on the day. White sat 94-95 mph with a heater that played best when he was able to elevate it effectively. His slurve-shaped breaking ball had tightness to it, but his feel for it was spotty. White also mixed in a couple of changeups in the mid-80s that were straight and lacked action.
Robby Snelling, San Diego Padres: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
FB: 90-93
Snelling had a brief four-pitch relief outing to finish the inning that Thomas White started.
Rhett Lowder, Cincinnati Reds: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
FB: 93-95 SL: 84-86 CH: 87-88
Lowder gave up a double to Kyle Teel on a slider and worked around an error to throw a scoreless frame. He peppered the zone with his mid-90s fastball and threw a couple of plus-plus breaking balls. He also worked in a few upper-80s changeups, dropping down to a lower arm slot on one of them.
Quinn Mathews, St. Louis Cardinals: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
FB: 93-95 / CB: 76 / SL: 85-87 CH: 81
Mathews fanned two in his inning of work and located to his glove side with his 93-95 mph fastball. He threw both of his breaking balls. His two-lane slider showed late action, while the lone curveball he twirled was a slow 1-to-7 breaker that Max Clark dropped into left field for a single. Mathews only threw one changeup; the pitch usually headlines his arsenal.
Bubba Chandler, Pittsburgh Pirates: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
FB: 96-98 SL: 87-88 CH: 88-90
Chandler finished out the game and was pretty electric overall. His upper-90s fastball had big riding life through the zone. Arguably the best pitch he threw was a 1-1 changeup to Teel that had drastic late fading action out of the zone and missed Teel’s bat. Chandler also made sure to showcase his upper-80s slider, with his last one the sharpest he threw, a two-planer that Gavin Cross swung over the top of for the second out of the inning.
Did not throw: Tink Hence, St. Louis Cardinals
American League
Emiliano Teodo, Texas Rangers: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
FB: 95-99 SL: 86-89 CH: 89
Teodo got the start in his parent club’s home ballpark and was the only pitcher to go two innings. The majority of his sliders were hard and short, while he flashed a few that had legit depth and two-plane shape with real late break. The one changeup he threw had fade and sinking action to go along with quality arm action and speed; it induced a swing-and-miss from Bryce Eldridge. Teodo only needed 14 pitches to cover his two innings.
Caden Dana, Los Angeles Angels: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
FB: 91-95 SL: 83-87 CH: 86
Dana really had feel for his slider on Saturday. It had three-quarter, two-plane shape and was plus throughout his one-inning outing. Cam Collier deposited a near center-cut fastball into the right-center bullpen, but that didn’t deter Dana from pounding the zone with it throughout his appearance. He also mixed in a lone changeup, which he choked; it bounced before making it to home plate.
Noah Schultz, Chicago White Sox: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
FB: 95-97 SL: 80-82 CH: 90 CUT: 88
Schultz allowed a few hits and a walk, surrendering three earned runs on the day. His fastball command was shaky. His low-80s slider was the headliner of the mix, with plus teeth and significant horizontal and vertical plane. He attempted to throw a couple of changeups at 90 mph but choked them, resulting in uncompetitive locations. Schultz also attempted to mix in a couple of 88-mph cutters. He also choked them, which limited the action on the offering.
A.J. Blubaugh, Houston Astros: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
FB: 94 SL: 87
Blubaugh came in to finish the frame that Schultz started and had a quick three-pitch outing, throwing two fastballs at 94 mph and a slider that he spiked into the ground at 87 mph.
Luis Morales, Oakland Athletics: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
FB: 96-99 CB: 81-85 CH: 88
Despite not even throwing a full inning, Morales showcased the best arm speed of the day to my eyes and demonstrated what his stuff is capable of in a short burst. His heater sat 96-99 mph with carry and missed a couple of bats in the zone, while his tweener-shaped breaking ball had plus tightness to it; he peppered it down and away to right-handed hitters. Morales also threw an upper-80s changeup to the last batter he faced. He didn’t land it for a strike, but it did have late depth.
Ben Kudrna, Kansas City Royals: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
FB: 95-96 SL: 86-87 CH: 86
Kudrna came in to finish off Morales’ inning and walked the first batter he faced on four pitches. His fastball was 95-96 mph and his slider also had a couple extra ticks of velocity (86-87) compared to usual, though it maintained its typical two-plane shape. Kudrna also threw one changeup at 86 mph that had late vertical depth; he buried it in the dirt.
Fernando Perez, Toronto Blue Jays: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
FB: 91-93 CB: 75 SL: 82-84
Perez gave up a solo shot to Drake Baldwin on a 93-mph heater on the outer third of the plate, but he otherwise had a clean inning. He started off the next batter, Dylan Crews, with a get-me-over 75 mph curveball. His fastball sat in the low 90s and lacked above-average life, while his 82-84 mph slider lacked finish and backed up on him multiple times.
Winston Santos, Texas Rangers: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
FB: 97-98 SL: 84-87 CH: 90
There was a bit more effort in the operation on Saturday than you usually see out of Santos and it resulted in his fastball sitting in the upper-90s. His heater normally features plus carry, but it had additional hop in this outing due to the velo uptick. Santos broke off a sharp two-plane slider with plus tightness, but the breaking ball backed up on him multiple times and often lacked depth. He showed a single changeup, which had splitter-type dive and came in at 90 mph.
