MLB All-Star festivities and the U.S. Team that faced the World Team at the All-Star Futures Game at Citi Field demonstrated one of the most important tenets of this celebrated sport: pitching. The U.S. Team’s arsenal of impressive, young arms held the World Team (6-9) to a paltry three hits. Futures Game MVP Matt Davidson’s two-run, fourth-inning homer led his ball club (9-6) to a fourth consecutive win by a score of 4-2.
Although the World Team entered the game with some pretty impressive prospects, such as Xander Bogaerts (Aruba/Red Sox), Miguel Sano (Dominican Republic/Twins), Henry Urrutia (Cuba/Orioles) and Carlos Correa (Puerto Rico/Astros), the extraordinary pitching of the U.S. Team kept their opposition from scoring any additional runs. A pair of New York Mets pitching prospects, Noah Syndergaard (U.S.) and Rafael Montero (World), demonstrated to the Met fans in attendance that the team’s future is full of promise. Every ballplayer who participated in the Futures Game was told by managers Mookie Wilson and Edgardo Alfonso to have fun and enjoy the moment while they watched the ballplayers on the field with a keen eye.
Immediately after the Futures Game, portable walls were aligned throughout the outfield in preparation for the Taco Bell All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball game. Luminaries such as Baseball Hall of Famers Ozzie Smith, Andre Dawson and Ricky Henderson; Met and Yankee greats Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Mike Piazza and Bernie Williams; and celebrities such as Ashanti and George Lopez graced their lineups with spectacular homers and extraordinary plays that eventually led to a National League team victory of 8-5.
Comedian Kevin James was unanimously named co-MVP along with Josh Wege, who lost the lower halves of both his legs in an explosion in Afghanistan. Wege is part of the Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team and took an inside pitch from Frank Thomas over the left field wall.
