De Vries, Flewelling star in MLB Futures Game

Jorge CastilloJul 12, 2026, 04:48 PM ET

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ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

PHILADELPHIA -- Leo De Vries was given a nickname back home in the Dominican Republic as he developed into the top international amateur player of the 2024 class: El Mutante. The name stuck, and he had a jeweler make him a custom pendant once he signed with the San Diego Padres for $4.2 million in 2024.

On Sunday, the moniker dangled from a thick chain under his personalized logo -- his initials LDV inside a triangle -- during the Futures Game, and it didn't take long for the shortstop to put the skill set that earned him it on display.

De Vries, the No. 2 prospect in baseball according to ESPN's Kiley McDaniel, led the game off with a single to left field before stealing second base and third base within seconds and scoring on a groundout from Boston Red Sox prospect Franklin Arias to give the American League a quick lead en route to a 6-1 win over the National League at Citizens Bank Park.

"I said I was going to steal second and third because I could see the pitches from the catcher," De Vries said in Spanish.

De Vries established himself as one of baseball's top prospects with an eye-opening showing in Low-A as a 17-year-old immediately after signing with the Padres, finishing the shortened season with 11 home runs, 13 steals and an .803 OPS in 75 games.

Last summer, barely a year after turning pro, his name was thrown into the national spotlight when the Padres used him as the centerpiece of a four-player package in a trade with the Athletics for hard-throwing closer Mason Miller, an All-Star for the second time this season, and left-hander JP Sears.

De Vries has maintained his trajectory through the transition. This season, the switch-hitter is batting .286 with 11 home runs, 31 steals and an .821 OPS in 75 games as one of the youngest players in Double-A. The expectations that come with such a transaction, in this case potentially becoming the face of a franchise in a new market when the Athletics move from to Las Vegas in 2028, did not burden him.

"I've never felt any pressure," De Vries said. "This is about playing the game. This is what we do. We're professionals. What happens off the field, we don't control. We have to go out, have fun, play the game. That's what we can control."

The NL tied the game in the first inning Sunday when Jesús Made, a shortstop in the Milwaukee Brewers organization and McDaniel's top-ranked prospect, grounded out to second base. From there, the AL scored five straight runs to close out the seven-inning exhibition, highlighted by Nathan Flewelling's two-run home run in the sixth inning.

Flewelling, a catcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, was named the game's MVP for the blast. A third-round pick out of Canada in 2024, he is batting .261 with 16 home runs and an .890 OPS in 73 games in High-A this season.

"I'm just very grateful to be here," Flewelling, 19, said. "It was just pretty surreal to be able to do that."

De Vries was out of the game by then, replaced in the bottom of the fourth inning after striking out in his second at-bat. The next time he appears on a big league field could be for his big league debut.

"It was wonderful," De Vries said. "It's always special to play in a big league stadium. Bryce Harper plays here, Trea Turner plays it. It was wonderful."