Not long after the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series revealed a new event to spotlight junior college players, the other shoe has finally dropped. In addition to that event, FSS CEO and President Jeremy Booth has also announced that there will be a Division 1 All-Star weekend as well, also set for August 16-18 at a Triple-A or major-league facility, with further details on location and facility to be revealed in the near future.
Both events are set to be held at the same time, making it a must-visit for the baseball community, particularly scouts and major-league executives, many of whom are still raving about the most recent Future Stars Series event, the inaugural Showdown, which was held at Globe Life Field, home of the World Series Champion Texas Rangers.
Like the JUCO event, there will be a best-of-the-best selection committee, one that features Josh Belovsky (Fullerton), Mike Neu (Cal), Jason Kelly (Washington), Jay Uhlman (Tulane), TJ Bruce (TCU), Jimmy Jackson (Maryland), Scott Jackson (Liberty), Mark Allen (Illinois), Clay Van Hook (UT Arlington), Travis Buck (LMU), Davin Pierre (Grambling), Matt Deggs (Lafayette), Brian Ryman (Lipscomb), Nick Magnifico (South Alabama), Tyler Shewmaker (Vanderbilt), Josh Newman (Purdue), Ty Blankmeyer (Duke), Greg Sullivan (Boston College), Rob Cooper (Miami) and Kerrick Jackson (Missouri).
As well as the names on that extraordinary list that encompasses the SEC, Pac 12, AAC, Big 10, Big 12, Conference USA, SWAC, WCC, WAC, Sun Belt and Atlantic Sun conferences, Booth and FSS scouting director Pat Murphy will also have a hand in the process. Upon nomination, the Future Stars Series will contact the school to inform them, and the player will have the option to accept or decline.
If the player opts in, the Future Stars Series staff will begin analysis which includes scouting, data and statistical analysis, and continue this process into the first month of the summer season. Reports will be written on nominated players, and the full FSS testing model will be done regionally before any selection is made, with the nomination process expected to be completed by the end of May.
A total of 50 players will be selected to participate, and must be draft eligible for the following season to be eligible. Additionally, pitchers who have reached a maximum innings workload will not be permitted to attend so as to ensure their long-term health.
“As we take this next step into the future, it’s gonna be lots of fun to spotlight these players and work on this event with the coaches who are participating,” Booth said. “This can help players at all levels, and this group of coaches are impact guys I’ve been fortunate to know for decades. They’re all high character and excellent baseball guys who impact their players and baseball daily, and it’s an honor to complete the panels with this crew.
The New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series helped produce a record-high 33 selections at the most recent 2023 MLB Draft, including No. 2 overall pick Dylan Crews and four first-rounders. The FSS has now helped produce 18 first-round selections, as well as four players who have gone on to reach the big leagues in Grayson Rodriguez, Bo Naylor, Kyren Paris and Tyler Soderstrom. In all, 19 FSS alums were listed on the most recent MLB Pipeline Top 100, including Crews, Ricky Tiedemann, Mick Abel, Robby Snelling, Tink Hence, Drew Gilbert, Edwin Arroyo and Tommy Troy.
All four players who reached the majors were also listed at some point, with Rodriguez serving a long stint as the consensus top pitching prospect in baseball before graduating to becoming a stalwart in the Baltimore Orioles rotation.
