In case you haven’t noticed, Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani are the leading vote getters in the upcoming MLB All-Star game (ASG) and will be starting for the AL and NL respectively. In order to make the team, the other players have to survive different phases of voting. I don’t understand the specifics, but figure there will be the usual AS snubs.

MLB just announced the Future Game rosters for the upcoming showcase of top prospects. Wisely, MLB has added several events to the ASG break, for me the highlight has always been this game. Celebrity softball games and homerun derbies are mere fluff.

The media in each ML market is treating this selection and the game differently. Not every team gets equal representation and, in some cases, it seems like some fanbases get shortchanged.

While MLB’s marketing team would have one believe that each participant is on the fast track for MLB success, reality informs us that’s just hype. Regardless of what happens to these guys ten years down the road, the game offers 110% of the fans, an opportunity to see all these guys whom they’ve heard so much about.

Several players have used the Futures game to propel themselves to stardom or at least a more immediate call-up. I fell in love with the game back in 2002 when the Brewers were the ASG hosts at Miller Park. It was a great way to begin a most enjoyable week of festivities. I enjoyed myself so much that I bought a ticket the following year when the ASG was played in Chicago at The Cell.

I’m attaching the initial rosters (as they will be updated should anyone get promoted or traded). Two of Chicago’s reps have high profiles for different reasons. Noah Schultz, a left-handed pitcher for the White Sox, is a top prospect who happens to be from Greater Chicago. Owen Caissie, the Cubs top position player prospect is a likely pawn in whatever in-season trade the Cubs will make. It doesn’t seem like his performance in the game will have any bearing on any trade. He’s kind of a known commodity at this point.

Rosters | All-Star Futures Game | MLB.com

The FSG is a great venue for celebrating the positives of the game and a positive spin will be put on every aspect of the game. One has to remember that success or failure in this game isn’t predictive of future success at the ML level. The book is still out on several high flyers.