WASHINGTON, D.C. — The ball was absolutely flying out of Nationals Park at this year’s MLB Futures Game; I think everyone except 2017 No. 1 pick Royce Lewis homered, and that’s only because he wasn’t in the game. The power surge takes a bit of a shine off of some of the home runs, although there were still many positive takeaways from the game.
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Dodgers outfielder Yusniel Diaz homered twice in five at-bats, both of which were hit very hard to center field on fastballs of 96 and 95 mph, respectively. Diaz was a top-100 prospect right after he signed but had trouble staying healthy in his first two years in the minors, breaking out this season in Double-A with a .314/.428/.477 line. He’s noticeably stronger than he was the last time I saw him, in 2017, adding what looks like 10 to 15 pounds of muscle, and was one of the only hitters on either roster who didn’t seem to have real trouble with recognizing pitches. He showed just a 45 arm from left field.
