The Kansas City Star reports Major League Baseball has asked the Royals to keep first-round pick Eric Hosmer out of the lineup with Rookie-level Idaho Falls until the grievance filed by the Major League Baseball Players Association regarding the Aug. 15 signing deadline is resolved.

Hosmer did not play for the Chukars last night, raising suspicions that something was afoot. The Star reports that MLB issued a statement on the matter that read, "We have asked the Royals to not play Eric Hosmer until the situation regarding certain player signings has been resolved.”

Hosmer was the third overall pick in the draft after leading Florida prep school American Heritage to Baseball America’s final No. 1 ranking this spring. He apparently signed for a $6 million bonus on the night of the deadline, though sources have confirmed to Baseball America that Hosmer’s contract was the last one agreed to and was signed after midnight. [...] Continue Reading »

The Arizona League announced its all-star team yesterday and Padres outfielder Jaff Decker was chosen as the league Most Valuable Player. It’s not a surprising selection as Decker’s been a hitting machine since being a supplemental first-rounder out of Sunrise Mountain High in Peoria, Ariz. this spring. Decker is the league leader in on-base percentage with a ridiculous 55 walks in 47 games and is near the top in batting average and slugging.

Aside from Decker, the rest of the list is highlighted by Mariners third baseman Jharmidy DeJesus who hit .339/.417/.591 through 127 Arizona League at-bats. The 18-year-old DeJesus was then promoted to short-season Everett in the Northwest League. . . Athletics shortstop Nino Leyja hit really well with a .313/.383/.456 line over 160 at-bats. The numbers are even more impressive for the 15th-round draft pick when you consider he posted them as a 17-year-old playing a premium defensive position. . . Alexi Amarista is a small outfielder out of Venezuela playing for the AZL Angels. Listed at just 5-foot-8, 150 pounds, the switch-hitter posted a line of .335/.420/.428 over 194 at-bats. The 19-year-old also stole 20 bases, but was caught 13 times. [...] Continue Reading »

The Florida State League all-star team was announced today and Jupiter first baseman Logan Morrison (Marlins) earned the league’s most valuable player honors. The 6-foot-2, 215 pound lefty slugger is hitting .332/.402/.497 on the season, leading the league in average and on-base percentage and ranking fourth in slugging.

The Tigers’ top prospect, Lakeland righthander Rick Porcello, heads the group of starting pitchers on the team. With 75 strikeouts over 125 innings, Porcello’s strikeout rate wasn’t jaw dropping, but he gets a lot of groundballs, helping him maintain a 2.66 ERA.

Despite pitching out of the bullpen, Fort Myers righthander Anthony Slama (Twins) ranked among the league’s top 10 in strikeouts, fanning 109 batters over 69 frames. St. Lucie catcher Josh Thole (Mets) put up good numbers for St. Lucie, hitting .301/.384/.430 over 342 at-bats . . . Sarasota third baseman Juan Francisco (Reds) puts up impressive power numbers but strikes out nearly once a game. . . Dunedin skipper Omar Malave was named manager of the year after leading the Jays to a league-best 45-20 record.
[...] Continue Reading »

The Northwest League announced its all-star team yesterday and the Boise Hawks (Cubs) filled out the roster at four different positions including the unanimous selection of Josh Vitters at third base.  There could have been more too, as outfielder Drew Rundle, who led the league in slugging, didn’t make the cut. Eugene Emeralds outfielder Dan Robertson (Padres) was chosen as the league’s MVP and Tim Hulett, who had a 12-year big league career with the White Sox, Orioles and Cardinals, was the manager of the year for the Spokane Indians (Rangers).
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A pair of Yankees’ and one Cubs’ Dominican Summer League players received 50-game suspensions for failing tests for performance-enhancing substances.

Yankees righthander Justo Arias, 19, tested positive for metabolites of Stanozolol. He signed out of the Dominican at the beginning of the international signing period, July 2, 2005, though he had yet to put the DSL behind him. Arias went 5-4, 3.18 with 38 strikeouts and nine walks in 45 1/3 innings this season.

Yankees lefthander Rafael Martinez, 23, went 6-2, 4.67 with 55 strikeouts and 27 walks in 44 1/3 DSL innings. He tested positive for metabolites of Stanozolol.

Cubs righthander Jhon Rodriguez, 18, tested positive for metabolites of Nandrolone. He went 1-0, 0.00 with 13 strikeouts and three walks in 13 2/3 innings in the DSL.

Prospect Of The Day

GCL Pirates third baseman Jarek Cunningham went 4-for-4 with a home run, but the effort wasn’t enough, as the Pirates fell to the GCL Phillies, 7-4, in the first game of the GCL semi-finals. Cunningham was an 18th-round pick out of Mount Spokane High School in Spokane, Wash. this spring. He hit .318/.385/.507 over the regular season.

Propsect Nuggets

Shortstop Esmailyn Gonzalez went 2-for-4 with a walk and a double as the GCL Nationals defeated the GCL Twins in the GCL semi-finals, 10-5. Left fielder Destin Hood (Nationals) chipped in by going 2-for-5 with a double and 2 RBIs. On the losing side, center fielder Aaron Hicks (Twins) went 2-for-5 with two singles and two RBIs. . . In the Appalachian League playoffs, Elizabethton (Twins) defeated Pulaski (Mariners), 7-4. Left fielder Evan Bigley powered Elizabethton’s offense by going 2-for-5 with a double and a home run. There was some bad news for Elizabethton, however, as righthander Bradley Tippett had to leave the game in the first inning with an injured elbow. Tippett, a 20-year-old Australian, put together a good season, going 10-4, 2.87 over 91 innings between the Midwest and Appalachian Leagues while striking out 78 and walking 14. . . A’s outfielder Travis Buck continues to bash Arizona League pitching as he rehabs from a concussion that’s kept him out of baseball for the past month. Buck went 4-for-5 yesterday with a home run and three RBIs. . . AZL Giants center fielder Wendell Fairley went 2-for-3 with two doubles. . . [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Returning from an oblique injury, Eugene righthander Mat Latos (Padres) has had two outstanding starts in his first two outings in the Northwest League. Latos went 6 1/3 innings on Thursday, allowed one earned run and struck out eight. He should be a good prospect to watch, as he was our No. 3 prospect in the Padres’ system prior to the beginning of this season.

Prospect Nuggets

Sticking with Eugene, right fielder Dan Robertson (Padres) was named the Northwest League’s Most Valuable Player yesterday. Robertson was a 33rd-round draft pick this summer after spending a year at Oregon State and he is leading the league in hitting (.373) and is third in the league in RBIs (41). Robertson proceeded to go 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI on Thursday. [...] Continue Reading »

South Atlantic League

Prospect Of The Day

Greensboro (Marlins) third baseman Matt Dominguez looks like he’ll put a cap on a successful first pro season as he hit two home runs Thursday night in a 13-2 rout of Lexington (Astros). He went 3-for-5 and drove in four runs, putting his line for the year at .287/.350/.477 with 16 home runs in 327 at-bats.

Prospect Nuggets

Greensboro center fielder Mike Stanton went 2-for-3, hit his 36th home run and drove in three runs. Stanton’s home run was the first in a line of back-to-back-to-back long balls, with his being followed by one from Dominguez and then one by first baseman Hunter Mense … Asheville (Rockies) third baseman Darin Holcomb went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double and six RBIs in an 11-1 win over Greenville (Red Sox). The six RBIs vaulted Holcomb to the league lead in that category with 101 on the year … [...] Continue Reading »

SOUTHERN LEAGUE

Prospect Of The Day

The Dodgers aggressively promoted left fielder Andrew Lambo from low Class A to Double-A Jacksonville earlier this month, making the 20-year-old one of the youngest players in Double-A. Don’t get too excited about just four games, but yesterday’s game was a good one for Lambo, who went 2-for-5 with a home run, a double and six RBIs. Lambo also helped the Suns’ run prevention by throwing out a runner at home plate.

Prospect Nuggets

Mobile outfielder Gerardo Parra (Diamondbacks) went 3-for-3 with two walks, a double and had an outfield assist at first base, though he also committed a throwing error … Jacksonville shortstop Ivan DeJesus helped Lambo and the Suns by going 3-for-4, extending his hitting streak to 21 games. But it was a rough night in the field for the 21-year-old DeJesus, who had two throwing errors and made another error missing a catch … Huntsville righthander Jeremy Jeffress (Brewers) didn’t last long last night, leaving after recording just two outs. Jeffress issued only one walk, but he gave up six hits and six runs.

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CALIFORNIA LEAGUE

Prospect Of The Day

Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) designated hitter Hank Conger helped shred High Desert (Mariners) 7-3 on Thursday night, delivering three hits and three RBIs and scoring a run. Conger is hitting .298/.325/.487 with 10 home runs and 69 RBIs and has been on a tear in August, having banged out 33 hits and driving in 29 runs.

Prospect Nuggets

Righthander Jordan Walden struck out seven and yielded two runs on four hits in six innings, improving to 5-2, 3.95 for the Quakes … Modesto (Rockies) catcher Michael McKenry was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs, and righthander Esmil Rogers had a trio of sevens (innings, strikeouts, hits) and also registered eight groundball outs in a 9-1 win against San Jose (Giants). … Visalia (Diamondbacks) shortstop Pedro Ciraco had three hits in a 4-3 win against Bakersfield. … Lake Elsinore (Padres) third baseman Brian Joynt doubled and homered in a 5-1 win against Inland Empire (Dodgers). … Stockton (Athletics) designated hitter Chris Carter finished with two hits, including his 39th home run and 103rd RBI, in a 6-1 win against Lancaster (Red Sox). [...] Continue Reading »

California League

Prospect Of The Day

Barry Enright offered a rare opportunity to bestow a Cal League pitcher with POTD honors, as the Visalia (Diamondbacks) righthander allowed just one hit in six innings and struck out six to lower his ERA to 4.43 for the year. The lone hit was a solo home run in the first inning, but the effort was good enough to earn his 11th win of the season.

Prospect Nuggets

Center fielder Peter Bourjos went 2-for-4 yesterday, including his seventh home run of the season for Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) . . . Modesto (Rockies) righthander Jhoulys Chacin surrendered one run in five innings, striking out five and walking one. The performance comes after he held the opposition scoreless in his last 10 innings . . . San Diego’s first round selection Allan Dykstra tallied the first hit of his professional career, a double, while serving as Lake Elsinore’s (Padres) designated hitter. [...] Continue Reading »

 Prospect Of The Day

Eugene third baseman James Darnell (Padres) continued his assault on the Northwest League with a solid showing at the plate. He went 2-for-4 with his first professional home run, a double and six RBIs. He also took three walks to cap a very impressive day.

Prospect Nuggets

Center fielder Blake Tekotte (Padres) joined Darnell with a 4-for-6 day that included a double, three runs, three RBIs and a stolen base. Eugene scored 21 runs on 19 hits and scored in eight of nine innings. . . Lowell righthander Kyle Weiland (Red Sox) threw five no-hit innings, walked one and struck out eight. He lowered his ERA to 1.13. . . Salem-Keizer third baseman Conor Gillaspie (Giants) went 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBIs, but committed his second error. . . Brooklyn righthander Brad Holt (Mets) had another solid outing. He went five innings and allowed one run on four hits, walked three and struck out five. . . Aberdeen righthander Oliver Drake (Orioles) pitched in his second game since a promotion from the Appalachian League. The 43rd-rounder from Navy went three scoreless innings and picked up a save. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Catcher Kyle Skipworth (Marlins) got off to a slow start as a professional but he ended on a positive, going 2-for-3 as the DH, helping the Marlins knock off the Nationals 5-4 on the last day of regular season play in the Gulf Coast League. Skipworth, the sixth-overall draft pick this June out of Patriot High School in Rubidoux, Calif., hit his sixth double of the season and drove in two runs. He was just beginning to heat up, hitting .313/.351/.563 over his last 10 games, but his season came to an end with a final line of .208/.263/.340. [...] Continue Reading »

INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE

Prospect Of The Day

Syracuse left fielder Travis Snider (Blue Jays) went 2-for-3 with a home run (two), two RBIs and a run scored. Though he won’t qualify for the IL’s top 20 prospects list because of a lack of playing time at the level, the 20-year-old phenom is batting .344/.388/.525 through 61 at-bats.

Prospect Nuggets

Rochester RHP Philip Humber (Twins) rattled off another fine start to finish August with a 4-1, 2.74 record in six starts, two of which were complete games. He struck out 36 and walked seven in that span. Last night, Humber limited Syracuse to two runs in seven innings, while striking out four and walking none. He did allow a home run to Travis Snider, but what are you going to do? . . . Indianapolis RHP Dan McCutchen (Pirates) didn’t walk anybody in his four innings of work last night—but that’s where the superlatives end. He allowed six runs on four hits, including four home runs. [...] Continue Reading »

Brandon Waring went deep twice, Madison Bumgarner won his 15th game and Wilmer Flores continued to shine in his low Class A debut.

South Atlantic League

Prospect Of The Day

In a move that probably shocks no one, Augusta (Giants) lefthander Madison Bumgarner is today’s POTD. Bumgarner worked five innings against Hickory (Pirates), allowed a run on three hits and struck out nine with one walk. Bumgarner struck out eight of the first 10 hitters he faced and extended his shutout streak to 38 innings, but it was snapped in the fourth after Hickory’s Matt Hague lined a single to right and Augusta right fielder Garrett Baker misplayed the bounce, allowing Hague to go all the way to third. Erik Huber drove in Hague with an RBI groundout.

Bumgarner finishes the regular season at 15-3, 1.46 with 164 strikeouts in 142 innings, putting him in line to win the three pitching triple crown categories. And since Augusta is in position to make the postseason—they lead Columbus by 5 1/2 games—Bumgarner could get at least one more start before all is done. [...] Continue Reading »

SOUTHERN LEAGUE

Prospect Of The Day

Righthander Kris Medlen (Braves) helped Mississippi clinch the second-half title in the SL’s South Division with a victory yesterday at home over visiting Mobile (DIamondbacks). Medlen struck out eight and allowed one run in six innings, walked one and gave up five hits. In 120 1/3 innings, Medlen has a 3.52 ERA with 120 strikeouts and 27 walks.

Prospect Nuggets

There are still some questions about his receiving skills, but West Tenn catcher Adam Moore’s (Mariners) season at the plate has been oustanding. The 24-year-old boosted his slash stats to .316/.394/.505 in 116 games yesterday by going 2-for-3 with a double and a homer, his 14th of the season … Jacksonville shortstop Ivan De Jesus (Dodgers) went 3-for-5 and hit a home run, his sixth of the year … Huntsville catcher Angel Salome (Brewers) went 2-for-3 and homered off Carolina righy Brett Sinkbeil (Marlins) … Huntsville righthander Alex Periard (Brewers) has solid stuff, though the 21-year-old is having an adjustment period getting used to Double-A. Yesterday Periard was excellent, throwing six shutout innings with two hits, no walks and five strikeouts against Carolina.

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Twins outfielder Ben Revere will undergo a minor surgery to remove loose particles from his left knee, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. Revere, who was with low Class A Beloit, hadn’t played since Aug. 18, and the announcement comes after he had returned to Minnesota to have his knee examined by a team doctor.

Revere, 20, was kept in extended spring training through most of April, but he had no problems adjusting to the Midwest League after joining Beloit late in the month. With a compact swing and a great understanding of the strike-zone, Revere maintained an average over .400 as late as July 24 and will finish the year at .379/.433/.497 in 340 at-bats. A first-round pick in 2007, Revere overcame doubts about his size (5-foot-9, 166 pounds) and has become the likely No. 1 prospect in the Twins system. He impressed with his defense in center field and his speed on the bases as well, where he was 44-for-57 in steal attempts. The announcement also comes one day after Revere was named the Midwest League’s most valuable player.

Prospect Of The Day

Catcher Buster Posey was just a single shy of the cycle as the Giants topped the Royals, 9-3 in the Arizona League. Posey, this year’s fifth-overall draft pick, went 3-for-3 with his third double, his first triple and his first home run. He walked twice, scored three runs and drove in three more. Through his first four games, he’s 7-for-16 for a line of .438/.500/.938.

Prospect Nuggets

Billings second baseman Alex Buchholz (Reds) went 5-for-5, raising his line to .407/.486/.637 over his first 91 at-bats. . .  Idaho Falls designated hitter Eric Hosmer (Royals) went 2-for-3 with his second double in as many games and two more walks. Idaho Falls fell short against Ogden, however, as third baseman Pedro Baez (Dodgers) and right fielder Kyle Russell (Dodgers) led the way to a 9-5 victory. Russell went 1-for-4 with his 11th home run of the season and Baez went 3-for-4 with two doubles (20) and his 11th home run of the season. . . [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

State College shortstop Chase D’Arnaud (Pirates) has really impressed in the second half of the New York-Penn League season. He hit his first home run in the first game of a doubleheader on Tuesday. In the second game, D’Arnaud went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Prospect Nuggets

Righthander Kyle Drabek (Phillies) allowed two runs in six innings in his second start for Williamsport, but fell to 0-1 after he couldn’t get any run support. . . Spokane righthander Neil Ramirez (Rangers) threw four shutout innings, scattered three hits and walked two. He struck out seven, as Spokane’s pitching continues to carry the team to the postseason. . . [...] Continue Reading »

Daniel Schlereth blew away Fort Wayne, Caleb Gindl had another strong performance and Madison Bumgarner makes his run for the record books tonight.

South Atlantic League

Prospect Of The Day

We don’t usually POTD honors to the same player two days in a row, but rain thinned out the Sally League’s schedule yesterday, so we’ll again give the nod to West Virginia (Brewers) right fielder Caleb Gindl for going 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI as the Power took another step towards clinching the Northern Division title with a 7-3 win over Lexington (Astros).

Prospect Nuggets

Charleston (Yankees) catcher Jesus Montero went 2-for-4 with an RBI in a 4-2 loss to Savannah (Mets). Montero is hitting a robust .360/.418/.620 so far in August. He’s ascended to the top of the league leaderboard in hits and is third in average. [...] Continue Reading »