angels prospect hank conger wins future mvp

In the world of baseball... As part of its All Star festivities, Major League Baseball presented the XM All-Star Futures Game, a showcase for up-and-coming pro players. It was a big night for Angels prospect Hank Konger who hit a huge three-run homer to help the United States beat the World team: Angels prospect Conger wins Futures MVP.

When Conger came to the plate in the bottom of the fifth inning, the U.S. was clinging to a 2-1 lead. Fellow Angel Mike Trout reached on a two-out error and the Royals' Eric Hosmer -- the other MVP candidate thanks to his four-hit day -- singled to put runners at first and second. World pitcher Henderson Alvarez of the Blue Jays got ahead of Conger, but then got a little too much of the strike zone with his 1-2 fastball.

"I was trying to get a good pitch to hit," Conger said. "I had two strikes on me. I got a fastball I could handle, I put it up there. I was rounding the bases and the right fielder actually kind of deked me. I thought I got it. I saw it clear the wall and it felt great."

Conger tried to play the stoic hero rounding the bases. But he couldn't keep the stone face as he rounded third and high-fived third-base coach Steve Decker, a broad smile crossing his face.

"I was trying to hold it back, but this is a fun event and the emotions just kind of spilled out," Conger said.

Not bad for the local hero, considering that Conger, who is Korean American, wasn't even supposed to play in the game. But a teammate's injury created an opening as one of the catchers. Conger is currently playing in Triple-A, but as they say, the Majors are just a phone call away. More here: Good Day to Be an Angel.