The New Balance Future Stars Series Main Event has become one of the biggest summer showcases for high school baseball players in the current draft class, with a slew of Day 1 picks coming out of each year’s event. Last year’s featured Cam Collier (Reds, first round), Cole Phillips (Atlanta, second round), Henry Bolte (A’s, second round), while alumni from previous years included future first-rounders Drew Gilbert, Mick Abel, Zac Veen and Cooper Hierpe. This year’s edition was split between Dunkin Donuts Park in Hartford, Conn., and Fenway Park, with two of the three games taking place in Boston.
The biggest standout at this year’s Main Event was Mississippi shortstop Cooper Pratt, who did a little of everything in his three games, homering and doubling in the Friday game at Hartford, while showing a plus arm and good lateral movement at short. The Ole Miss commit is still projectable, listed at 6-foot-4, 195 pounds, although he could end up outgrowing the middle infield. The bat should be what carries him even if he moves to third base.
Chicago-area catcher Zion Rose has already shown himself to be a likely first-rounder thanks to his defense and athleticism. He showed off both arm strength and accuracy when making throws to second, and flashed above-average speed. At the plate, he showed some doubles power and worked the count well across the three games, with a more line-drive swing that’s likely to produce contact but not big power. He’s committed to Louisville and is transferring for his senior year to IMG Academy, which produced this year’s first-rounder Elijah Green and 2021 second-rounder James Wood.
Georgia catcher Tyler Minnick hit a mammoth homer at Hartford and had several other hard-hit balls, although he had more trouble behind the plate than Rose in both receiving and throwing.
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