Twins pitching prospect Meyer named to replace injured May for Futures Game
Twins pitching prospect Trevor May was a late addition to the 2014 Futures Game, as he became the third Minnesota minor leaguer to be named to the event.
Now a calf injury means May is a late scratch for Sunday's game. In his place will be another Twins pitching prospect: right-hander Alex Meyer, who will represent Team USA. The news was announced on Twitter by the Futures Game's account (@futuresgame).
Meyer, 24, is 5-4 with a 3.46 ERA in 17 starts this year for Triple-A Rochester and has struck out 93 batters in 83 1/3 innings. The 6-foot-9 right-hander was acquired by Minnesota prior to the 2013 season in a trade with the Nationals that sent center fielder Denard Span to Washington in exchange for Meyer.
According to Baseball Prospectus, Meyer is the No. 32 prospect in baseball -- up from 88th in 2013. He'll join fellow Twins prospects Jose Berrios and Kennys Vargas (both of whom are on the World team) in Sunday's Futures Game.
The Twins were hopeful that the 24-year-old May would be healthy enough to pitch in Sunday's game, but the calf injury that has kept him out since his last start on June 21 has lingered longer than expected. In 14 starts for Rochester, May is 8-4 with a 2.94 ERA.
Team USA will be managed by former Twins skipper Tom Kelly, who guided Minnesota to two World Series titles in 1987 and 1991. Kelly's former pitcher, Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven, will manage the World team.
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