June 25, 2009 at 2:57 PM
Kelly and Tazawa selected for Futures Game
It's been a banner year so far in 2009 for two Red Sox pitching prospects, and now they've earned some official recognition for their efforts. The Red Sox today announced that righthanded pitchers Casey Kelly and Junichi Tazawa have been selected to participate in the eleventh annual Futures Game. The Futures Game, which pits the best minor leaguers across all levels from the United States against their counterparts from the rest of the world, is set to take place on Sunday, July 12 in St. Louis before the MLB All-Star Game. Kelly was a first-round selection by the Red Sox in the 2008 draft and is the fourth ranked prospect in the organization according to SoxProspects.com. He has gone a combined 7-3 with a 1.64 ERA so far this season for Low-A Greenville and High-A Salem. In 77.0 innings spanning 14 starts, the 19-year-old Kelly has struck out 63 and walked only 12, limiting opposing hitters to a .186 batting average. Tazawa, who was signed as an international free agent in December, has been equally impressive for Double-A Portland, going 7-4 with a 2.92 ERA in his first 14 starts. He has also thrown 77.0 innings so far this season and has struck out 71 and walked 25 in that span, yielding a .225 batting average against.
Kelly and Tazawa will endeavor to replicate the Futures Game success had by Che-Hsuan Lin, who captured MVP honors at last year's game by going 2 for 2 with a home run.