XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game rosters announced

• All-Star Futures Game roster

Rosters for the eighth annual XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game were announced today by Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball and Baseball America.

The XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game will feature the top U.S. and international Minor League prospects competing against each other as part of Taco Bell® All-Star Sunday, July 9 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. The game will begin at 4:00 p.m. (EDT) and will be televised live on ESPN2.

Taco Bell® All-Star Sunday is the first of three days of All-Star events at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, culminating with the 77th All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 11. For the fourth consecutive year, the outcome of this year's All-Star Game will have implications on the postseason, as the League that wins the 77th All-Star Game will receive home-field advantage in the 2006 World Series.

Major League Baseball, in conjunction with the 30 Major League Clubs and Baseball America, selected the 25-man rosters for each team, the U.S. Team and the World Team. Each Major League organization is represented and the World Team features players from 11 different countries and territories. Players from all full-season Minor Leagues were eligible to participate.

The XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game will end after seven innings, regardless of the score. Players and coaches will be outfitted in special XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game jerseys and will wear the caps of their Major League organization with an XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game logo embroidered on the side. Four Minor League umpires will work the game: Christopher Conroy (home plate) of the Eastern League, Jeffrey Latter (first base) of the Southern League, Jason Stein (second base) of the Texas League and Ria Cortesio (third base) of the Southern League. This is the second year that XM Satellite Radio, the official satellite radio network of Major League Baseball, has sponsored the game.

Hall of Famers Gary Carter and Ferguson Jenkins will manage the U.S Team and World Team, respectively. Carter was an 11-time N.L. All-Star for the Montreal Expos and New York Mets, and Jenkins was a three-time N.L. All-Star and Cy Young Award winner for the Chicago Cubs. Coaches for the U.S. and World Team are as follows:

Twenty players have competed in both the XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game and the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. These players are:

There are currently 137 players from the first seven XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Games in the Major Leagues.