The curious case of Josiah Romeo takes another big turn this weekend.
The Canadian-born Mississauga Tigers standout is the lone player from the 2025 grad class attending the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series, joining a short list in event history to have such an honor, one that includes one of baseballโs top pitching prospects, Mick Abel.
He is, however, eligible for the 2024 MLB Draft, and finds himself among those listed in FSS Plus analyst Joe Doyleโs most recent Top 300 prospects list.
So, even as one of the younger players by grad class classification, this is, as Romeo says, a business trip, even despite it being in such an iconic venue like Fenway Park.
โPlaying at Fenway is probably one of the coolest things ever,โ he said. โBeing able to say youโve played on that field at such a young age would mean a lot. Especially being young gives us the chance to see what itโs like to be on the spotlightโฆhonestly, Iโm there for business. Iโm there to showcase my skill and show scouts that I can play at the next level and even higher than that.โ
A shortstop and right-handed pitcher, the praise jumps off the page of his FSS scouting reports: โThis kid has a real futureโฆhas a really good toolset nowโฆcertainly at the top side of his peer group.โ
Intriguing as a two-way player, Romeo likely draws the most attention for what he can do on the mound; the six-foot-three, 195-pound righty throws his fastball up to 91 miles per hour as part of a three-pitch mix that also includes a slider and curveball that he used to dominate in the most recent Future Stars Series Underclass Combine for the 2025 class in Nashville.
RHP Josiah Romeo (@JosiahRomeo1306) is up to 91 today with a sharp breaking ball at the Underclass Combine.@NB_Baseball @P15Sports #WeGotNow pic.twitter.com/Q7bgpFzAtY
โ New Balance ๐๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ (@ftrstarsseries) June 28, 2023
Also set to play at the upcoming Underclass Elite next weekend, Romeo is focused on the task at hand right now, as heโs slated to start the third and final game of the event on Sunday afternoon at Dunkin Donuts Park in Hartford for the White Team, where heโll likely also see some action in the field.
โMy experience with Future Stars has been an eye opener for me personally, because you get to play against the best competition and get to be around a great coaching stuff,โ he said. โAlso knowing that you can get gear from these amazing events means people are putting their time and money into our futures.โ
A veteran of several FSS events over the past few years, including last yearโs Underclass Elite in Frisco, heโs been working hard since his appearance at Shelby Park in July to show that he can be a consistent performer for any of the bevy of big-league clubs expected to be represented to be scouts and high-ranking execs over the next two weekends.
โThe main thing that I have been doing since the Future Stars combine was just staying as consistent as I can in the gym and getting better at my craft,โ he said.
Since 2003, he has covered multiple World Series and has worked high-profile events ranging from the MLB All-Star Game to the World Baseball Classic. In addition to his role working for the Future Stars Series that he's held since 2017, Ashmore currently serves as the beat writer of the Double-A New York Yankees affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, as well as national hockey writer and New York Jets game day beat reporter for The Trentonian.
A regular contributor to Baseball America, Ashmore has worked seven Super Bowls, 11 Stanley Cup Finals, the 4 Nations Face-Off, the NBA Playoffs, College Football Playoff National Championship Game, Frozen Four, Daytona 500, major UFC events and much more as he approaches 3,200 games covered in his career.
An avid card collector and sim racer, he lives with his wife, Sarah, their son William, and their beloved dog, Bailey, and cat, Smokey.
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