June 28, 2016
Donald Holohan/Reading Fightin Phils
Dylan Cozens, who has hit 20 home runs and 21 doubles in 75 games at Double-A Reading this season, is going to San Diego for MLB's All-Star Futures Game next month.
The Phillies are sending two players from the Eastern League-leading Reading Fightin’ Phils to Major League Baseball’s crown jewel of prospect showcase games next month.
Slugging outfielder Dylan Cozens and reigning Paul Owens Award winner Ricardo Pinto will represent the Phillies in Major League Baseball’s All-Star Futures Game at Petco Park in San Diego on Sunday, July 10 – two days before the All-Star Game.
Cozens, the Phillies second-round pick in 2012, has hit 20 home runs and 21 doubles in 75 games at Double-A Reading this season. The 22-year-old Arizona native is slashing .273/.360/.554 in 331 plate appearances with the Fightins this season, tied for the Eastern League lead in home runs (with teammate Rhys Hoskins) and leading the league with 160 total bases. [Read more about Cozens, here.]
Cozens will play for the U.S. team in the future game, where he’ll have a chance to work with a former Phillies slugger (and soon-to-be Phillies Wall of Famer): Jim Thome is the hitting coach for the Team USA roster.
Pinto, also 22, will represent the Phillies on the World Team roster.
Pinto is 3-3 with a 4.32 ERA in 15 starts for Reading this season. The Venezuela native is 29-20 with a 3.10 ERA in 72 games (72 starts) since beginning his pro career as an 18-year-old in 2012. Pinto won the Paul Owens Award as the organization’s top pitcher in the minor leagues in 2015.
The MLB Future Game will air live on MLB Network at 7 p.m. on July 10.
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