Tonight, right-handed pitcher Seth Hernandez and outfielder Edward Florentino will represent the Pittsburgh Pirates at the All-Star Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

A collection of some of the best young talent in the game, the Futures Game has hosted some eventual stars in Major League Baseball and gives the chance for prospects to boost their stock in front of a national audience.

In 2019, MLB changed the format of the Futures Game from an American team against an international team to the same format as the MLB All Star Game: National League vs American League.

Since then, ten players have represented the Pirates at the Futures Game, and that number will increase to 12 once Hernandez and Florentino take to the field for the NL. And that list has spanned all the way from draft busts to current stars in the Pirates lineup.

Before the game, I figured I’d take a look back at some of the names who have played for the Pirates in the Futures Game.

Will Craig, 2019

In the first year of the new NL vs AL format, the first baseman Craig was the only Pirates prospect to take the field in Cleveland.

A first-round pick by the Pirates back in the 2016 draft, Craig had worked his way up the minor-league ladder and was playing in Triple-A ball by the time he was named to the Futures Game.

The Wake Forest product spent the rest of the 2016 season in Short-Season West Virginia, before spending 2017 in Bradenton (back when the Marauders were a High-A affiliate), 2018 in Altoona, and started 2019 in Indianapolis. Craig was the 15th ranked prospect in Pittsburgh’s system that year, and sported a good glove with the Indians.

Craig was hit by a pitch twice in the Futures Game, once by Seattle’s Justin Dunn and once by Detroit’s Matt Manning. Craig was lifted for pinch-runner Nolan Gorman after his second hit by pitch in the fourth inning, which also chased Manning from the game. The match ended in a tie, the only non-decision of the game’s history.

Craig would make his MLB debut in 2020 and played 20 total games over the 2020 and 2021 season. He slashed .203/.261/.281 (.542 OPS) with one home run and three RBI. And yes, he made the principal mistake in that infamous Pirates-Cubs error game.

Quinn Priester and Roansy Contreras*, 2021

After the Futures Game was missed in 2020 due to Covid, the event was back the following year with a pair of Pirate prospects. To date, Priester and Contreras mark the only time both Pirates prospects in the Futures Game were pitchers since the introduction of the NL vs AL format.

Priester was a homegrown arm, drafted in the first round (18th overall) by the Pirates in 2019 out of high school. The right-hander was in the middle of a full season at High-A Greensboro, where a 20-year-old Priester threw nearly 100 innings with a 3.04 ERA, 1.239 WHIP, and 2.51 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He was the 3rd-ranked prospect in Pittsburgh’s system that year.

Contreras, meanwhile, was acquired months prior as part of the four-player return from the New York Yankees in exchange for starter Jameson Taillon. Contreras spent the vast majority of the year in Double-A Altoona, with one start in Triple-A and his major league debut at the end of the year. Contreras was the 20th ranked prospect. Unfortunately for Contreras, he was injured before the mid-July contest and couldn’t pitch.

Priester did make an appearance, recording a pair of outs to finish the fourth inning in an eventual 8-3 win for the NL. He would go on to make 14 starts and throw just under 100 innings for the Pirates before he was traded for infielder Nick Yorke in 2024, and Contreras would have a contentious relationship with success at the major league level. He was designated for assignment in 2024 and now pitches in Japan.

Mike Burrows and Henry Davis*, 2022

Another member of the Pittsburgh pitching factory, Burrows was a young right-hander who had just been promoted to Triple-A when he was named to the NL’s roster for the Futures Game. An 11th round pick by the Pirates back in 2018, Burrows had boasted a 2.94 ERA before he was bumped up to Indianapolis.

The 11th ranked prospect Burrows was supposed to represent the Pirates alongside Henry Davis, the first overall pick from a year prior, but the catcher was injured and had to be replaced before the game. Burrows pitched the fifth inning of that year’s game, issuing a walk and allowing a hit, but striking out current Cincinnati Red Spencer Steer en route to a scoreless inning.

Davis has struggled to live up to the scouting report of a power hitter in MLB, and has a career slash line of .175/.260/.299 (.559 OPS) with 22 career homers through 245 games.

Burrows provided the Pirates with a solid 2025 season in the rotation, but his best gift to the organization was how his name fetched Brandon Lowe, Jake Mangum, and Mason Montgomery in that three-team trade with Houston and Tampa Bay.

JP Massey and Endy Rodríguez, 2023

The 2023 NL team featured two Pirate prospects with wildly different career paths.

Catcher Endy Rodríguez (who was listed on the roster as an infielder) had a breakout year in minor league ball in 2023, leaping all the way up to second-place on MLB Pipeline’s rankings of the Pirates’ farm system. The switch hitter had been acquired in a three-team trade with the New York Mets and San Diego Padres which netted the Pirates Rodríguez and others, most notably David Bednar.

Massey, meanwhile, was a draft pick out of college the year before, and had a productive first year on the mound when he was named to the Futures Game. However, he never made it past High-A Greensboro, and as of 2026, is pitching in independent ball.

Rodríguez drew a walk in his first plate appearance in the second inning, and was eventually brought home via a sacrifice fly by current Phillie Justin Crawford. Playing first base, Rodríguez was also walked in the fourth inning, and was eventually replaced in the bottom of the fifth. He would make his major league debut just a week and a half later.

Massey had an eventful sixth inning that saw the righty record two quick outs before walking the bases loaded. Only after Nick Yorke, who was then a Boston prospect, struck out on a foul tip did Massey exit the inning safely as part of a 5-0 win for the NL.

Bubba Chandler and Termarr Johnson, 2024

The third straight year of a pitcher-batter duo, the 2024 rendition paired 2021 third-round pick and flamethrower Bubba Chandler with fourth overall pick from 2022 and power hitter Termarr Johnson.

The right-hander Chandler opened the year in Double-A Altoona before a late-season promotion to Indianapolis. Johnson, meanwhile, worked through some growing pains in High-A Greensboro with a .238/.372/.385 (.757 OPS) before a jump to Altoona at the end of the year.

Chandler and Johnson, both top-five prospects of the Pirates in 2024, each made an appearance in the game. Johnson started at second base and notched a single in the fourth inning before he was subbed out, while Chandler closed out the NL’s win in the seventh and final inning.

Since then, Chandler has started to grow into a starting righty in the major leagues, while Johnson is still looking to work his way through the minor leagues. After a rough start to Triple-A ball, though, Johnson is improving and is still a top-five prospect for Pittsburgh.

Konnor Griffin and Esmerlyn Valdez, 2025

Although this year’s combo of Hernandez and Florentino is pretty exciting, it’s hard to argue that they top last year’s duo of Griffin and Valdez.

Griffin, the ninth overall pick from 2024, was well on his way to a major league gig when he suited up for the Pirates at the Futures Game last summer. Valdez, however, was a lesser-known prospect at the time, but still an electric power hitter who was making his way through Greensboro.

Griffin started the game at shortstop and reached base on an infield single in the bottom of the third, but was caught stealing second base and was thrown out. Valdez was an in-game replacement and was the final batter of the game, flying out to center field in a 4-2 win for the NL.