The Midsummer Classic is just one event, but not the only showcase on All-Star Weekend in Atlanta this year. There is also the All-Star Futures Game, which highlights the top prospects in the minor leagues, and it will take place three days before the MLB All-Star Game.
And perhaps the most unique player to take part in that week’s events will play in the Futures Game.
That prospect is Jurrangelo Cijntje, a first-round pick by the Seattle Mariners in 2024. Just as Shohei Ohtani can be labeled a unicorn because of his two-way ability as both a hitter and pitcher, the same can be said of Cijntje, who throws from both sides of the mound as a switch pitcher.
Born in the Netherlands but raised in Curacao, the 22-year-old currently pitches for the Everett AquaSox, a High-A affiliate of the Mariners. He is 4-4 on the season with a 4.88 ERA, but is averaging more than a strikeout per inning in his first season of professional baseball. He’s logged more time on the mound, and had more success, as a right-handed pitcher this year, holding batters to a .165 average (26 for 158). As a lefty, he’s allowed a .360 average (9 for 25).
While he still has kinks to work out as a southpaw, there are strengths that he has at that side of the rubber, compared with throwing right-handed. Cijntje does have a higher velocity, more command, and a more diverse pitch arsenal as an RHP. But as a lefty, he gets more sink on his pitches. Thus, he’s able to induce more groundballs, which is essential with runners on base, and there’s a need for a batter to ground into a double play.
Cijntje is naturally left-handed and came to also throws right-handed by mimicking his father, who played professionally in the Netherlands. When he was drafted last season, Cijntje talked more about how he evolved into a switch pitcher.
Cijntje added that his dad then had him throw a ball right-handed into a tire to work on becoming a two-way thrower, and eventually, a switch pitcher.
Cijntje first made a name for himself as both a switch pitcher and a shortstop at the 2016 Little League World Series. He played for Willemstad, Curacao, as a 13-year-old and then pulled off being both a switch pitcher and switch hitter at Champagnat Catholic School just outside Miami. He was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2022 MLB Draft but elected to enroll at Mississippi State University instead.
At MSU, Cijntje struggled initially, posting an 8.10 ERA in the 2023 season before putting it all together last year. In 2024, he posted a 3.67 ERA en route to an 8-2 record and was named a second-team All-American. He mainly threw right-handed that season, but upon getting drafted by Seattle, he said his intention is to pitch with both arms.
Mississippi State pitching coach Justin Parker, who has guided 28 pitchers into being selected in the MLB Draft, talked about the uniqueness of Cijntje, simply from a preparation standpoint.
Switch pitchers are not unheard of in baseball history, though most of them pitched during the 1800s. Since the 20th century, the only MLB pitcher to regularly throw with both arms was Pat Venditte, who appeared in 61 games from 2015 to 2020. Venditte was better as a lefty, holding batters to a .204 average, compared with .256 as a righty. But overall he was a below-average reliever who had a 4.73 ERA, and the hits he allowed topped his strikeout total.
Cijntje is one of nine first-rounders from the 2024 draft who were picked for the 2025 All-Star Futures Game. Past MVPs of the game who went on to play in the MLB All-Star Game include Alfonso Soriano, Jose Reyes, Nick Castellanos, and Kyle Schwarber.
With this year’s game in Atlanta, former Braves will be the skippers for the respective clubs. Cijntje and the rest of the American League prospects will be managed by Marquis Grissom, while the NL prospects will be managed by Hall of Famer Chipper Jones.
The 2025 All-Star Futures Game will take place on Saturday, July 12.
