Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Shea Langeliers is headed to the Hall of Fame, even before his big league debut.
A 24-year-old catching prospect, Langeliers was voted MVP of the All-Star Futures Game on Saturday after homering and throwing out a runner trying to steal third base in the American League’s 6-4 victory.
His Victus Pro Reserved DT29 maple bat, size 34-32, is headed to Cooperstown.
“It’s crazy, I came into today just excited to be here,” Langeliers said.
New York Yankees prospect Jasson Dominguez and Minnesota’s Matt Wallner hit two-run homers in the third inning off San Francisco’s Kyle Harrison, who took the loss.
Dominguez, at 19 the youngest AL prospect at the game, tied the score 3-3 with his 415-foot drive on a slider at the letters. Wallner homered three batters later on hanging sinker for a 5-3 lead, a 115.3 mph drive hit harder than any home run by the major league Twins this year.
“In an ideal world, that’s what I would have done,” Wallner said.
Langeliers, the oldest player on either team, added a solo homer in the fourth on a hanging changeup from Atlanta’s Jared Shuster. Langeliers caught Shuster last year at Double-A Mississippi, before Oakland acquired Langeliers in the March trade that sent first baseman Matt Olson to Atlanta.
“I know how good he is,” Langeliers said. “He made my job really easy catching last year. It was cool being on the other side of it.”
He threw out Corbin Carroll, the No. 3 overall prospect, trying to steal third.
What was more satisfying?
“Throwing the runner out, for sure,” Langeliers said.
The Futures Game attracts top prospects. Julio Rodriguez played in last year’s game and is the youngest All-Star this year at 21, also picked for Monday night’s Home Run Derby.
Jack Leiter, son of former major league pitcher Al Leiter, threw a 1-2-3 fourth. Selected second overall by Texas in last year’s draft, Leiter reached 97.5 mph.
Darren Baker, son of Houston manager Dusty Baker, entered in the fifth and hit a liner that Chicago White Sox center fielder Oscar Colas grabbed with a tumbling catch.
Toronto’s Yosver Zulueta faced one batter and got the win, retiring the Mets’ Francisco Alvarez on a grounder that ended the third.
The teams played at Dodger Stadium, three days before the All-Star Game is held at the park.
Milwaukee’s Joey Wiemer hit a ninth-inning sacrifice fly that Oakland’s Denzel Clarke caught against the eight-field wall. The Yankees’ Ken Waldichuk got the save by retiring the Brewers’ Jackson Chourio on a flyout.
Players, excited to be in a big league ballpark, watched while hanging over the dugout railings. Agent Scott Boras and his staff filled the first row a section behind home plate.
Dodgers right-hander Bobby Miller struck out three in the first: Dominguez on a changeup, Anthony Volpe on a curveball and Wallner on a changeup.
Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn made a 100.5 mph to first to throw out Houston’s Yainer Diaz in the second inning, faster than any throw in a big league game since Statcast started in 2015. The big league high is 97.8 mph by Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz on Thursday.
Texas prospect Dustin Harris had an RBI single in the first off Miller, but the NL built a 3-1 lead in the second after the Dodgers’ Diego Cartaya hit a two-out fly to the center field warning track was dropped by Dominguez on the warning track for a two-run error. San Diego’s Robert Hassell III followed with an RBI single that chased Hunter Brown.
Dominguez, who learned Thursday he is being promoted from Tampa to Hudson Valley, was relieved when he homered.
“My mind said: Everybody forget this error,” he said.
WEB GEM
Cleveland’s George Valera ran into deep left to rob Hassell of a run-scoring extra-base hit in the first.
THWACK
Tony, Olivier and Emmy Award winner Bryan Cranston took a line drive to a shoulder off the bat of Grammy Award winner Anthony Ramos during batting practice before the celebrity softball game.
“It’s definitely going to bruise,” Cranston said after recovering in his trailer. “I might be more of a cheerleader in this game.”
Actor Simu Liu on his softball ability: “I’m all athleticism, zero technique.”