The All-Star Game might be the crown jewel of All-Star Week -- it's in the name, after all -- but for my money, the most exciting game played that week is the Futures Game. Getting a sneak peek at many of baseball's next stars in a format such as this is always tantalizing, and for many fans who don't attend a lot of minor league games or watch a lot of streams, this might be the first glimpse at some of these players.
The future comes more quickly than you think for many. Looking at 2017's Future Game participants, you see a surprisingly long list of players who aren't just up getting cups of coffee but are regular contributing players, including Rhys Hoskins, Jack Flaherty, Ronald Acuna Jr., Rafael Devers and Yoan Moncada. And many more ought to be doing so quite soon -- hi, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.!
Running through this year's Futures Game roster, it's fun to project which players will be this year's group who will excel in the near future. But we'll also give you some concrete predictions before you accuse me of chickening out!