A's Have Two Prospects Headed to MLB Futures Game in Seattle

MLB Futures Game rosters were announced on Monday, and there are loads of top prospects that will be filling these rosters, including six of the top ten prospects in baseball. Three of the other top ten prospects (Elly De La Cruz, Eury Pérez, and Bobby Miller) are already in the big leagues. The lone top-ten player to miss out on the Futures Game is Evan Carter of the Rangers, who missed a couple of weeks in June, likely as rosters were coming together. 

The A's will be sending their top prospect, Tyler Soderstrom, who is ranked #37 overall on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 list, along with unranked Lawrence Butler. For those that were tuned into spring training this year, Butler's name should sound familiar. One of the most common questions A's fans would ask during the spring was whether Butler could make the A's out of camp. 

Soderstrom, the A's first rounder in 2020, is still just 21 years old but he is knocking on the door to the Majors with a strong season in Las Vegas. He is batting .255 with a .302 OBP, has 16 homers, and has consistently hit the ball hard. He likely has to improve his walk rate (6.3%) and lower his strikeout rate (28%) a little before making his debut, but he should be up in Oakland at some point in the second half of this season. 

For those wondering, Soderstrom has caught 32 games for the Aviators this year while manning first base in just 22 games. That adjustment could be in part due to the arrival of first baseman Ryan Noda (a potential All Star this season) via the Rule 5 Draft. Last year Soderstrom got more time (59 games to 52 games) at first. 

Butler, 22, has been raking in Double-A Midland. Through 59 games he is batting .284 with a .350 on-base, nine homers, ten steals, and has really cut down on his strikeout rate this season. That rate currently sits at 18.6%, while it was 31.5% in High-A with Lansing a year ago. 

Some fans were wondering where Zack Gelof's name was in this roster announcement, and the simple answer is likely roster limits. There are 25 players listed on the AL roster and 15 teams in the American League. Not every team has two representatives, and nobody has three. The 23-year-old is the A's #3 prospect. 

Gelof is having a nice year (.282 average, .398 OBP, seven homers), but including him would have taken either Soderstrom or Butler off the roster, and for the decision-makers, it was likely about which position they needed someone to complete the AL roster, as opposed to snubbing Gelof. 

The Futures Game will be on Peacock on Saturday July 8 at 4 p.m. PT.