Gage Wood conceded he felt starstruck the first time he walked into Citizens Bank Park.
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Now, he will be among the stars.
Wood, the Phillies’ top pitching prospect, will start Sunday in the Futures Game, part of MLB’s All-Star Week festivities in Philadelphia. Wood received the news from World Series-winning Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino in a Zoom call that was posted to social media.
In 16 starts between two levels of the minors, Wood has a 3.44 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 55 innings, including a 3.45 mark in eight double-A starts. The Phillies skipped Wood two levels in May when they promoted him from low-A Clearwater.
The Phillies drafted Wood in the first round (26th overall) last July and invited him to a game after he signed for $3 million.
“I got to go around the clubhouse, all the facilities, meet everyone,” Wood said in April as a guest on The Inquirer’s Phillies Extra podcast. “Got to talk to Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, the whole pitching staff, pretty much. Got to talk to Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, all those guys. You get there and you’re like, ‘Wow, this is pretty cool.’
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“And I’ll always remember that for the rest of my life. I went home and I told pretty much everyone that I’m friends with, [or] I’m even close to, people that just asked me, ‘Did you get to talk to Bryce Harper?’ And I’m like, ‘Actually, yeah, I did. It was freaking sweet.’ But no, they were great.”
Wood, the No. 69 prospect in the sport according to Baseball America’s midseason top-100 rankings, will represent the Phillies with fellow right-hander Wen-Hui Pan.
Victorino will manage the National League team in the Futures Game; Larry Bowa will manage the American Leaguers. The seven-inning game will begin at noon Sunday.
Baseball’s biggest stars are descending on Philadelphia for the 96th All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 14. Follow all of The Inquirer’s coverage here.
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