Padres' Prospects McCoy, Kemp To Play In AFL Fall Stars Game

It's shaping up to be a pretty busy weekend for San Diego Padres' minor-league outfielder Alex McCoy.

Hours after McCoy learned that he had been selected to participate in the Arizona Fall league's annual Home Run Derby on Saturday, he received word that he had been chosen as one of seven outfielders to represent the National League team in Sunday's AFL Fall Stars Game, which pits the best NL prospects in the AFL against the AL's top minor-leaguers.

Game time is 5 p.m. PT and the contest will air on the MLB Network.

McCoy's all-star recognition is just the latest feather in the cap of a 2026 season that has seen him become one of San Diego's more intriguing prospects.

After going undrafted out of the Hofstra University, he was signed by the Padres in July of 2024.

He entered the 2026 season as not much more than an afterthought, but he did nothing but rake at two stops - High-A Fort Wayne and Double-A San Antonio - while fighting his way onto the list of Padres' top prospects, where he stood at No. 26 according to MLB Pipeline when the AFL season began.

Needless to say, expect to see McCoy ranked much higher when the updated rankings are released during the offseason.

Joining McCoy as an AFL All-Star is starting pitcher Kannon Kemp, who is San Diego's 13th-rated prospect and one of 10 hurlers named to the NL Fall Stars roster.

Pitching for the Peoria Javelinas, who stood tied for first place in the AFL standings with a 14-9 record after the games of Nov. 3, Kemp has started five games and thrown 13 innings with nine earned runs allowed and a 6.23 ERA.

It is the 14 strikeouts that he has compiled in that time that stand out as he has used a fastball that averages 97.1 mph, fourth-highest in the league, to send struckout batters back to the dugout mumbling to themselves.

Seeing Kemp's velocity return to elite status is very welcome since he was limited to 18 games, 10 starts and 38.1 innings this season because of injuries.

The Padres do have a chance to add another player to the Fall Stars Game as utility infielder Justin DeCriscio was named one of three NL players fans can select in the "Final 2" vote, which will determine one last player from each league who will play in the game.

You can vote HERE for DeCriscio, with online voting set to conclude at 5 p.m. PT on Friday.

DeCriscio's qualifications for the game include a .268 average and .925 OPS in 12 games played with three home runs, 14 RBIs and four stolen bases.