Perfect Game All-American Classic Returns To Petco Park For Eleventh Straight Year
Perfect Game announces that the Nation’s Top-Rated High School Baseball Players Will Compete in San Diego
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Jerry Ford, President of Perfect Game announced today that the 2019 Perfect Game All-American Classic will take place on Sunday, August 11in San Diego, Calif. This is the 17th annual edition of the country’s premier high school baseball All-Star Game and the 11th year in a row the game will be played at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres.
Far more than just a game, the event provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the players selected. While in San Diego the players will participate in a series of baseball related activities in addition to a visit to Rady Children's Hospital, a lunch with Honorary Chairman Trevor Hoffman on a beach alongside the Pacific Ocean as well as the event's annual awards dinner banquet held on Saturday night.
The rosters are comprised of the 50 best high school seniors from across the nation. The players are identified and selected through a series of Perfect Game events. Players that attend regional showcases in the spring may be invited to participate in the National Showcase–a collection of the top 300 players–held in mid-June in Phoenix, Ariz. at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. From there most of the final selections for the Classic are made.
Since the event’s inception in 2003, 206 of the players that have participated have gone on to become first-round draft picks in the MLB First-Year Amateur Player Draft. Nine of those players were selected with the first overall pick, including 2017 No. 1 overall pick Royce Lewis (Twins). In addition, 171 players that have participated have played in the Major Leagues including some of the game’s brightest stars.
Some of the game’s past participants include:
Kris Bryant – 2016 National League MVP and 2015 NL Rookie of the Year
Corey Seager – 2016 National League Rookie of the Year
Rick Porcello – 2016 American League Cy Young
Bryce Harper – 2015 National League MVP and 2012 NL Rookie of the Year
Carlos Correa – 2015 American League Rookie of the Year
Madison Bumgarner – 2014 NLCS and World Series MVP
Andrew McCutchen – 2013 National League MVP
Jose Fernandez – 2013 National League Rookie of the Year
Buster Posey – 2012 National League MVP and 2010 NL Rookie of the Year
Jeremy Hellickson – 2011 American League Rookie of the Year
Other notable PG All-Americans include Major League All-Stars Javier Baez, Alex Bregman, Gerrit Cole, Justin Upton, Sonny Gray, D.J. LeMahieu, Francisco Lindor, Freddie Freeman, Dellin Betances and Lance McCullers. Rawlings Gold Glove winners that have played in the Classic include Freeman, Hellickson, LeMahieu, Lindor, McCutchen, Jason Heyward and Eric Hosmer.
The 2019 Perfect Game All-American Classic will be televised nationally once again on MLB Network, Major League Baseball’s Emmy Award-winning 24/7 television network. Rosters for the 2019 Classic will be unveiled as part of the selection show streamed on MLB.com during Major League Baseball's All-Star Game Fan Fest in Cleveland, Ohio.
Proceeds of the Perfect Game All-American Classic go to support pediatric cancer research and treatment, specifically to the event’s beneficiary, Rady Children’s Hospital.In the weeks leading up to the game, every player in the Classic will have the opportunity to conduct an online fundraising contest to raise funds for the Hospital. Since the inception of the Classic, more than $1,000,000 has been raised with the bulk of it going to the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Rady Children’s Hospital since the game moved to San Diego.
Blue Ridge Sports returns to serve as the logistical planning partner of the Classic. For more information about the event please visit www.perfectgame.org.