A's top-prospect Tyler Soderstrom records hit, walk in MLB Futures Game

The MLB's All-Star Weekend started on Saturday with the Futures Game pitting the best National League and American League prospects against each other at T-Mobile Park in Seattle. The NL squad won the game with a solid 5-0 final result over their AL counterparts in the rare seven-inning matchup between both baseball leagues.

The exhibition, of course, featured a huge load of talented young players from all across the baseball landscape, but it was Miami Marlins Nasim Nuñez, the no. 20 prospect in the organization, who was named MVP of the game after getting picked in the second round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Florida organization.

The Oakland Athletics sent two players to the game, first-baseman Tyler Soderstrom (Triple-A) and outfielder Lawrence Butler (Double-A).

Soderstrom is ranked as the 35th-best prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline while Lawrence Butler didn't crack the top 100 youngsters announced by the league right before the game started.

The first-baseman of the A's did enough in his second Futures Game appearance (he already made the 2021 version of it) by getting a hit and a walk. Although he started in the first bag, Soderstrom has played at both the first base (more of late) and the catcher (started his pro career under the plate) positions through the last few years. In fact, through the weekend and his pro career, Soderstrom has played around 52 percent of his game as the team's catcher and only 38 percent at first.

Soderstrom has hit 20 home runs at Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators this season, and there is a big enough chance he earns a summer call-up to the majors with the A's later this year, or at least a late-Septemeber cup-of-coffee in the MLB.

Butler has topped at AA so far, though a promotion to Triple-A is expected before the year is over and he might actually get an MLB cup of coffee late in the season considering his progression through the A's organizational ladder.

The outfielder, who started on the left field for the AL squad on Saturday, went 0-for-3 and struck out once while not reaching base at all.

Butler, who is ranked as the 7th-best prospect in the A's organizational farm system, never got off the field, though, one of only three position players to achieve the feat along with teammate and fellow A's prospect Soderstrom.

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