The Athletics’ prospect pipeline took center stage in Philadelphia on Sunday, and two of the organization’s newest headliners made their mark in the MLB Futures Game.
Leo De Vries, the A’s top prospect and baseball’s No. 2 prospect behind the Brewers’ Jesús Made, set the tone right away for the American League. Batting leadoff, he opened the game with a single in the first inning, then showed off the kind of speed that makes him such a dangerous player by swiping second and third before scoring the American League’s first run.
De Vries was limited to two at-bats before JoJo Parker came in as a pinch-hitter. Parker delivered with an RBI double, helping push the American League to a win in the Futures Game.
Jamie Arnold also gave the A’s plenty to like. The left-hander didn’t start for the American League, but he made his outing count in relief. Arnold worked a scoreless inning, allowing a walk while striking out one and getting through the frame after facing just three batters.
For an organization that has seen its farm system take a big step forward over the last year, Sunday offered another reminder of what’s coming. That progress began last summer when the A’s traded All-Star closer Mason Miller to the San Diego Padres for De Vries.
It continued in the draft, where the club landed FSU southpaw Jamie Arnold, the consensus No. 4 prospect, after he slid to 11th overall. And this weekend, the A’s added Georgia Tech star Drew Burress with the eighth overall pick after going over slot to secure the outfielder, who was viewed as a borderline top-five talent.
Burress wasn’t in the Futures Game on Sunday, but De Vries and Arnold gave the A’s a strong preview of the talent moving through the system. There’s even a chance De Vries could be headed to Triple-A for the second half of the season, while Arnold could be on a similar path and eventually join a young rotation that includes fellow southpaw Gage Jump.
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