OAKLAND -- Tyler Soderstrom might get an opportunity to show off his impressive bat-flipping skills at Coors Field.
Soderstrom, who is rated as Oakland’s top overall prospect and No. 82 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list, will represent the A’s as part of the American League roster in the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, which is set for July 11 at Coors Field in Denver.
This selection comes before Soderstrom has even completed a full year of Minor League baseball. The 19-year-old catcher is also the second-youngest player who will be taking part in this year’s contest, the youngest being his teammate on the AL side in 18-year-old Yankees prospect Jasson Dominguez.
When the A’s selected Soderstrom 26th overall in the 2020 MLB Draft, they were well aware of the supreme strike zone recognition and raw power that made him one of the top high school bats in the country. Those hitting skills have been on full display so far at Low-A Stockton, where he’s gained attention for his majestic bat flips and entered Wednesday slashing .315/.399/.575 with nine homers and 40 RBIs while leading the Low-A West league in doubles (18) and extra-base hits (28) in 45 games.
“Tyler is a beast,” said A’s assistant general manager Billy Owens. “He’s one of the best pure hitters to come through our system in the 23 years I’ve worked here. It’s a well-deserved honor, and he’ll make some noise in Denver.”
Where Soderstrom had room to improve coming out of the Draft was his defense behind the plate. Though initial scouting reports indicated a possible position change in the future, the A’s were impressed with the strides he made during his time in big league camp during Spring Training. That aspect of Soderstrom’s game continues to show steady improvement with Stockton.
“I do think he has the skillset to catch,” said A’s director of player development Ed Sprague. “He’s definitely improved. There were some times in the past where he looked overmatched, in terms of blocking. He improved a lot when we were able to get him around our catching coordinator Gabe Ortiz and drill him out on a daily basis.
“His bat is going to be far advanced over his catching all the time. But I think catching is something he wants to do.”