A healthy oblique will allow Ethan Salas to represent the Padres later this month in the All-Star Futures Game. He’ll have familiar company.
Both Salas and left-hander Kash Mayfield have been selected for the prospect showcase to be held at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank at 9 a.m. July 12 on NBC.
The 20-year-old Salas was activated Tuesday after missing roughly a week with an oblique tweak. He is hitting .277/.347/.427 with seven homers, 33 RBIs and 13 steals in 56 games at Double-A San Antonio.
Salas was the consensus top prospect signed by any team during the 2023 international amateur window.
Mayfield, 21, has a 3.22 ERA, 53 strikeouts and a 1.07 WHIP in 44⅔ innings in 12 starts to begin the year at high Single-A Fort Wayne. The Padres’ 2024 first-rounder is holding hitters to a .192 batting average.
The All-Star Futures Game selection is the second for Salas, who played in 2024 showcase before missing most of last year with a back injury.
That’s a big reason why Salas had fallen out of MLB.com’s top-100 prospect rankings to start the season. He’s back on that radar, however, after a resurgent year with Missions, all the way up to No. 34 as of Wednesday.
Mayfield has yet to crack MLB.com’s top-100 but is trending in that direction after a solid start to his second professional season.