If you're going to watch Real Salt Lake welcome FC Dallas to Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday night (9 pm ET | MLS LIVE on ESPN+ in US, DAZN in Canada), be prepared to see a hefty share of Homegrown Player signings in both squads.
Maybe even an historic share.
Records for the number of academy products to play in an MLS match could fall in the fixture, if the past is any indication. The last time the teams played, they each tied a league record by fielding a starting XI with five academy products. With a later substitution coming off the bench, the game set MLS records for total number of academy starters (10) and total number of academy players (11) in an MLS match.
Real Salt Lake forward and 2018 AT&T MLS Rookie of the Year winner Corey Baird has made three starts in his sophomore campaign for the Claret-and-Cobalt. Homegrown defenders Aaron Herrera and Brooks Lennon have each started all four of RSL's 2019 league fixtures.
For FC Dallas, goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez and midfielder Paxton Pomykal have played four matches each, while defender Reggie Cannon has featured in three.
This season, Salt Lake currently leads all MLS clubs with 1,306 academy product minutes, and on Saturday broke a league record when coach Mike Petke fielded six academy players in his starting XI in a trip to LAFC. Granted, that figure owed partly to a combination of playing through the international window and with two players serving red card suspensions.
Dallas ranks second in the league with 1,092 academy product minutes this season, and defeated the Colorado Rapids in Week 4 with coach Luchi Gonzalez starting five Homegrown Players.
