PHILADELPHIA — Tampa Bay Rays catcher Nathan Flewelling, a 19-year-old from a cattle farm in Central Alberta, Canada, launched the only home run of the 27th All-Star Futures Game and earned the Larry Doby Most Valuable Player Award as the American League routed the National League 6-1 at Citizens Bank Park.
Flewelling, a third-round pick from the 2024 MLB Draft ranked as the Rays’ No. 2 prospect and No. 72 overall by MLB Pipeline, drove a first-pitch fastball over the right-field wall to break open what had been a tight contest. He became the record-setting third member of the Rays organization to win the Futures Game MVP, joining Toby Hall in 2001 and Brent Honeywell Jr. in 2017.
“I think, if you’re good enough, people will find you,” Flewelling said of his path from cold-weather Canadian baseball to a premier prospect showcase. “That was my mindset, and that’s kind of how it worked.”
The game featured speed and pitching before Flewelling’s blast. Oakland A’s shortstop De Vries, acquired when the club traded Mason Miller to the Padres, singled, stole second and third, and scored on a groundout by Boston’s Franklin Arias to put the AL up 1-0. After the NL tied it in the third, Rada stole second in the fifth and scored on a single by Rays No. 1 prospect Theo Gillen, sliding headfirst into home on an errant throw to make it 2-1.
“He had just walked a guy, and I knew he was going to try to be aggressive,” Flewelling said of his home run at-bat. “I was looking first-pitch heater right down in the zone. And that’s where I got it, and the rest is history from there.”
Toronto Blue Jays shortstop JoJo Parker, another 19-year-old and Toronto’s No. 1 prospect, added an RBI double off a 101.1 mph fastball from Nationals right-hander Miguel Sime Jr. in the seventh to pad the lead. “His curveball buckled me a bit,” Parker said. “So I’m glad he threw me the heater right there.”
Flewelling, who honed his game at a baseball academy in Red Deer and turned heads with elite exit velocities at the 2024 MLB Draft Combine, said he is in no rush but is eager to reach the majors. “Obviously I’m still young, and I think there’s a long ways to go in my development,” he said. “I’m still learning every single day, but I don’t really put a timeline on it. I’m getting more ready every single day, so I think it could be soon. I’m really willing to impact the Rays team, and I’m excited to get up there one day and hopefully help them out.”
Twenty-five players from the 2025 Futures Game have already appeared in the majors this year, a benchmark Flewelling and fellow Rays prospect Gillen will be measured against heading into the second half of the minor league season.