WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Over 38,000 people watched from the stands Sunday in Washington D.C.’s Nationals Park as Tuskegee University pitcher Christian Marshall stepped up to the plate to throw the ceremonial first pitch of the 2018 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game. Elgin Woodside, a catcher for Tuskegee’s baseball team, assisted. Although the two were not yet prospects for the “Majors,” they both have a stake in the future of baseball.“Growing up as kids, playing baseball, everyone has that dream of going to the [pros],” Marshall said, as he explained the feeling of pitching in a game with Minor League Baseball’s top prospects.
Woodside added: “Even though we never thought that moment would come to us, whenever we got in the moment, it didn’t feel like we were out of place. It felt like we were meant to be there, and all our hard work was paying off and God just gave us our blessing.”
As a part of the Major League Baseball’s All-Star Week, the 2018 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game is meant to shine a spotlight on budding baseball stars. At the 20-year mark, the exhibition game “features the top Minor League prospects competing in a nine-inning contest as part of All-Star Sunday,” according to the league’s official website.
Marshall and Woodside are pitcher and catcher of Tuskegee University’s SIAC baseball team. The two bonded over baseball, however, long before they entered Tuskegee, in their hometown of New Orleans, Louisiana; both participated in the New Orleans MLB Urban Youth Academy.
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