Josue De Paula Shines in the Futures Game with a Home Run and the MVP
In a memorable performance, Josue De Paula, star prospect of the Los Angeles Dodgers, shone in the Futures Game with a three-run home run that propelled the National League to victory over the American League. The event, which took place at Truist Park, was even more special for De Paula, as his father was present to witness his outstanding performance. De Paula was awarded the Larry Doby Award for Most Valuable Player of the game.After a first unsuccessful at-bat, De Paula, who was playing as the starting left fielder for the National League, faced left-handed pitcher Noah Schultz, the top prospect for the Chicago White Sox. Schultz threw him two sliders, the first was a ball and the second, a strike. Attempting a third slider, De Paula hit a powerful hit that traveled 416 feet, sending the ball over the right field fence.“I was overwhelmed with emotion,” De Paula stated after the match.
Josue De Paula
De Paula, 20 years old, grew up in New York, but his family moved to the Dominican Republic in 2021 so he could pursue a professional baseball career, after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled his high school baseball season. He signed with the Dodgers for $397,500 in January 2022. After playing in the Dominican Summer League that summer, De Paula returned to the United States to play with the Class A Rancho Cucamonga in 2023. This season, he is batting .265 with 10 home runs and an OPS of .835 in 78 games for the High-A Great Lakes. During the offseasons, he trains in the Dominican Republic with New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto and Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz.“I just wanted to go out there and see the ball, hit the ball, knowing we didn’t have any information on these pitchers,” De Paula commented.
Josue De Paula
LuJames Groover, third baseman in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization, was the only player with multiple hits in the game, with two infield singles. He scored the fourth run for the National League in the fourth inning thanks to a double by Owen Caissie, a Chicago Cubs prospect. The American League scored the first two runs of the game with an infield single by Braden Montgomery, a White Sox prospect, in the third inning, and a sacrifice fly by Sebastian Walcott, the top prospect for the Texas Rangers, in the fourth. George Lombard Jr., the top prospect for the New York Yankees, played the entire seven-inning game for the American League, starting at second base before moving to shortstop. He went 2-1 with a double, a walk, a stolen base, and a run scored. JR Ritchie, a pitching prospect for the Atlanta Braves, was the National League’s starter at his organization’s stadium and pitched a scoreless inning with two strikeouts and one walk. Jonah Tong, a prospect for the New York Mets, who led the minors with 125 strikeouts at the start of the weekend, followed Ritchie and pitched another scoreless inning with a fastball that reached 97 mph and struck out Harry Ford, a catching prospect for the Seattle Mariners, with a curveball.“It’s a lot on the mental side, not physical, because I feel like everything physical is always going to be there. The mental tips and how to do your job, how to do your day, your routine, just how to handle yourself,” De Paula affirmed.
Josue De Paula
“Honestly, I felt more comfortable than I thought,” said Tong, who has an effectiveness of 1.83 in 15 starts for the Double-A Binghamton this season. “I just took a deep breath and realized I’ve been here. The stage was a little bigger, but it was a lot of fun.”
Jonah Tong
