Rafael Perez will take over as Major League Baseball's director of Dominican operations, the league announced today.

From the press release:

"Perez, who previously served as Director of International Operations for the New York Mets, will succeed Jorge Perez-Diaz, MLB's interim Director of Latin American Operations, on November 1st. Perez-Diaz will continue to manage Major League Baseball's legal affairs throughout Latin America."

Perez had been with the Mets since 2005, working most recently under general manager Sandy Alderson, whose previous job had put him in charge of reforming MLB's Dominican operations. Perez has worked for the league office before, serving as MLB's senior manager of Latin American operations from 2002-2005.

The Los Angeles Times also reported that Dodgers assistant farm director Chris Haydock will join MLB "to work on international projects." Haydock had worked with the former Dodgers assistant GM Kim Ng, now MLB's vice president who oversees international operations.

There's a chance Yu Darvish could be pitching in a major league uniform in the United States in 2012.

Regardless of whether that happens, he is the top pitcher in the world not currently under contract with an MLB team and is coming off a dominating season for the Nippon-Ham Fighters in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. With the NPB's regular season over, Darvish finished with a 1.44 ERA, 276 strikeouts and 36 walks in 232 innings, ranking second in the league in ERA and first in strikeouts.

Darvish made his first playoff start today, and you can watch a replay of his entire start. Darvish allowed one run on four hits in seven innings, struck out seven and didn't issue a walk, though the Fighters' bullpen couldn't hold the lead and Seibu came back to win 5-2. According to the televised feed, Darvish's fastball worked around 92-96 mph, though he leaned heavily on his offspeed stuff.

If you want to see for yourself what Darvish looks like without booking a trip to Japan, here's your chance.

A reminder that our player pages now have career stats for all active professionals, and we have transactions for the vast majority of them. You know you want to track David Winfree's trek through pro ball.

Arizona Diamondbacks
Elected free agency: LHP Alberto Castillo, 3B Sean Burroughs
Added to 40-man roster: OF David Winfree
Removed from 40-man: LHP Alberto Castillo, C Robby Hammock, 3B Sean Burroughs (all three players outrighted to Triple-A)

Drafted in 2003, David Winfree has logged nine seasons in the minors, the last three in Triple-A, yet prior to this move by the Diamondbacks had never spent time on a 40-man roster. The 25-year-old righthanded hitter appeared in 39 games for Reno this season, batting .321/.389/.575 with nine homers, but did not play after July 23.

Atlanta Braves
Signed: OF Jake Rife (Chico (North American))
Released: RHP Paul Bacot, LHP Tyler Stovall, C Nathan Raffle

Poor control undid lefty Tyler Stovall, an ’08 second-round pick out of Hokes Bluff, Ala. He walked 9.4 batters per nine innings in his 42 appearances for low Class A Rome during the past two seasons.

We last heard from Paul Bacot, an ’03 second-rounder from an Atlanta high school, back in June ’06 when the Braves placed him on the restricted list. There he spent the past six seasons. [...] Continue Reading »

Lefthander Andrew Albers (Twins) pitched into the seventh inning, and Jimmy Van Ostrand (Astros) hit a two-run double to give him all the offense he needed as Canada beat Team USA 2-1 to win the gold medal at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Canada's victory earned the first baseball gold medal for the country at a senior level. Canada's best international finishes previously were bronze medals in the last two World Cups, earlier this month and in 2009.

Albers, who pitched collegiately at Kentucky, was the star, pitching out of the stretch and pounding the zone aggressively throughout. He struck out eight and walked none in 6 2/3 innings, giving up a first-inning run but dominating the rest of the way against an American lineup that put up three double-digit scoring outbursts in the previous four Pan Am contests.

"It was all about getting ahead and staying down in the zone with my fastball," Albers said in a postgame phone interview. "I was able to command the fastball, got ahead and got some great help from my defense, and my catcher Cole Armstrong called a great game. We really got in a rhythm tonight."

Veteran lefty Andy Van Hekken (Astros) matched Albers through the early innings, but lost his way with two outs and none on in the sixth. Chris Robinson (Cubs) singled, followed by an opposite-field single by Tim Smith (Royals). Van Ostrand then lined a double down the right-field line, scoring Robinson easily. Right fielder Brett Carroll (Red Sox) fielded and threw to second, and Smith alertly raced all the way around from first with the go-ahead run. [...] Continue Reading »

USA Baseball's World Cup/Pan Am Games team got its biggest victory of the fall Monday afternoon, taking a 10-run lead and barely holding on to beat Cuba 12-10 at the Pan American Games. The victory put the Americans into the gold-medal game Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern against Canada, which beat host Mexico 5-3 Tuesday night.

It also ends Cuba's uninterrupted string of Pan Am golds. The United States won the Pan Am baseball competition in 1967, and Cuba has won every four years since then—10 consecutive tournaments since 1971. That string has included wins against amateur American clubs, such as in 2007 in Brazil and 1987 in Indianapolis, as well as the 1999 Pan Ams in Winnipeg, Canada, the first one with professionals in the baseball competition.

USA Baseball's pros lost 8-7 to Cuba in the World Cup earlier in the month, but reversed the result this time around by doing what Cuba did in that game—jump on the starter early. They banged out 11 hits overall and took advantage of six walks, then got just enough from the bullpen after righthander Todd Redmond (Braves) could give them just four innings.

"We jumped out to an early lead," manager Ernie Young said in a statement, "but at no point did we think we were going to run away with it. Cuba is a great team and their players showed their fight today. They never gave up, but neither did our guys, and we held on for the win." [...] Continue Reading »

USA Baseball's professional team is playing in two tournaments this fall, moving on to the Pan American Games in Lagos de Moreno, Mexico, after its bronze-medal game in the 2011 World Cup was washed out.

Team USA has not won the Pan Ams in baseball since 1967, when former Davidson and Wake Forest coach George Greer was the team's hitting star. Cuba has won the last 10 Pan Ams and beat the U.S. College National team for the gold medal in 2007 in Brazil.

Current Team USA members Jordan Danks (White Sox) and Jordy Mercer (Pirates) were on that club as collegians. However, this year's club—which has added catcher James McCann (Tigers) and outfielder Jimmy Gallagher (White Sox) to replace the injured Travis d'Arnaud (Blue Jays; left thumb surgery) and lefty Royce Ring since the World Cup—got off to a good start, winning its first two Pan Am contests in easy fashion with consecutive mercy-rule victories. [...] Continue Reading »

Eleven players elect for free agency, bringing the total to 65 thus far this offseason. The full list of so-called declared minor league free agents, i.e. those with no minor league contract renewals remaining, is distributed about five days after the World Series ends.

Atlanta Braves
Released: RHP Evan Danieli, RHP Luis De Luna, RHP Wei Huang, RHP Dan Jurik, LHP Alexis Pinto, C Meng Tsai, 3B Jordan Kreke

Baltimore Orioles
Signed: 1B Darryl Crosier
Elected free agency: RHP Jeremy Accardo, RHP Mitch Atkins
Removed from 40-man: RHP Jeremy Accardo (outrighted to Triple-A)
Reinstated from DL: C Jordan Wolf

The Orioles initially signed Darryl Crosier, a Maryland-Eastern Shore product, in May 2010, only to release him in June. Now he's back with the organization.

Chicago White Sox
Signed: C Adam Ricks (re-signed)
Released: RHP Chase Cooney, RHP Jean Duque, SS Jerry Puentes
Elected free agency: RHP Shane Lindsay
Removed from 40-man: RHP Kyle Cofield, RHP Josh Kinney, RHP Shane Lindsay, LHP Leyson Septimo (all four players outrighted to Triple-A) [...] Continue Reading »

The Baseball World Cup announced its all-tournament team, with former Cardinals farmhand Curt Smith named MVP. The 26-year-old Smith, who starred at Vermont in college, now plays for the Lincoln SaltDogs of the independent American Association.

Here's the all-tournament team:
Starting Pitcher: Hyoun Taek Oh, South Korea
Relief Pitcher: Yadier Pedroso, Cuba
Catcher: Damaso Espino, Panama
First Baseman: Jose Abreu, Cuba
Second Baseman: Joe Thurston, U.S.
Third Baseman: Chang Min Mo, South Korea
Shortstop: Jonathan Malo, Canada
Outfielders: Rusney Castillo, Cuba; Tom Brice, Australia; Conception Rodriguez, Panama
DH: Fernando Seguinol, Panama

The United States' bronze-medal game against Canada was cancelled by rain. While the Americans were first told they would be co-bronze medalists, Canada's players were given bronze medals on a tiebreaker (Canada went 8-3 in the Cup, the U.S. went 7-4, and Canada won the head-to-head matchup), while the Americans did not get medals.

Also, the U.S. added Tigers farmhand James McCann, their 2011 second-round pick, to the roster for the upcoming Pan Am Games in Mexico, which begins Thursday. McCann replaces the injured Travis d'Arnaud (Blue Jays), who had surgery on an injured thumb in Arizona this week.

Here's a quick look at the statistics for some affiliated minor leaguers in the World Cup, with this link to the total stats for USA Baseball's club of affiliated players: [...] Continue Reading »

Jonathan Schoop (Orioles) had an RBI single in a two-run fourth inning, and international veteran Rob Cordemans and the Dutch bullpen made it hold up as the Netherlands beat Cuba 2-1 in a rain-plagued final day at the 2011 World Cup in Panama.

The Netherlands scored two runs in the fourth, answering a Cuban run in the top frame, and held on behind Cordemans, who was the Florida junior college pitcher of the year in 1997 at Indian River (Fla.) JC. Cordemans has pitched in the Netherlands as a pro, and the 36-year-old has pitched in the Olympics and numerous international tournaments. This was his finest moment, as he pitched 7 1/3 innings, struck out six and yielded only one run. Juan Carlos Sulbaran (Reds) gave up two hits but got three outs, and veteran David Bergman got the last two outs to earn the save and the gold medal for the Dutch. The final out, a soft line drive by Cuba's Hector Olivera, can be viewed on this Dutch website. [...] Continue Reading »

Team USA started slowly at the 2011 World Cup, failing to earn a chance to defend its consecutive gold medals in the '07 and '09 events.

But a strong rally in the second round, including a doubleheader sweep Friday in dramatic fashion, have helped the U.S. salvage a shot at the bronze medal on Saturday. The Americans beat South Korea 3-1 in a game that started at 11 a.m. local time, then rallied from 4-1 down entering the seventh and final inning with a six-run rally—capped by a three-run homer by Jordy Mercer (Pirates)—to beat Venezuela 7-4.

The two victories left the U.S. at 4-3 in the second round and 7-4 overall in the World Cup. While it hasn't been announced officially, the U.S. will play Canada—which won the bronze medal in 2009 and which beat the U.S. 6-1 in this Cup's first round—for bronze on Saturday.

[...] Continue Reading »

The Netherlands clinched a spot in the World Cup gold-medal game—the first European country to do so in a tournament format—with two victories Thursday, including a 4-1 victory against previously undefeated Cuba.

The last European country to play for gold was during what is now considered the first World Cup, in 1938. That was a best-of-seven series between the United States and the United Kingdom (won by host U.K.). Also, it was before World War II, so this Netherlands club has done something unprecedented with a meaningless game against Venezuela remaining tonight to end the second round. The Dutch team has ridden tremendous pitching to lose only once in nine games, posting a 1.57 ERA overall. It's allowed five runs twice—once in a 7-5 win against the U.S., once in its lone loss, 5-4 to Canada.

The U.S. remained in medal contention with a 2-1 victory against Australia and plays a doubleheader today and must sweep to reach the medal round, but it appears to be eliminated from a spot in the gold-medal game. [...] Continue Reading »

This time: Oct. 4-10

In this installment: 17 players kicked free from 40-man rosters this season elect for free agency. Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks and Royals release more than a dozen players each, many of them signed this summer as nondrafted free agents. Each organization operates three short-season affiliates—Arizona for the first time this summer—thus the need for overstocked inventory. 

Arizona Diamondbacks
Released: RHP Sammy de los Santos, RHP Sean Johnson, RHP Mike Lebo, RHP Jason Postill, RHP Greg Robinson, RHP Drew Zizinia, LHP Johan Jaime, LHP Diony Santana, C Jose Alegria, C Jhoan Pimentel, 1B Ramon Castillo, 1B Joe Weik, SS David Narodowski, OF Westley Moss, OF Roberto Rodriguez
Elected free agency: SS Cody Ransom, OF Ryan Langerhans

Chicago Cubs
Removed from 40-man: RHP Justin Berg (outrighted to Triple-A), RHP Brian Schlitter (outrighted to Triple-A)
Assigned to Arizona Fall League: RHP Chris Carpenter, RHP Andrew Cashner, RHP Marcus Hatley, RHP Trey McNutt, 2B D.J. LeMahieu, 3B Josh Vitters, SS Junior Lake [...] Continue Reading »

All the World Cup games scheduled for Wednesday in Panama were lost to rain. As a result, most teams are playing three games in the next two days.

Team USA plays Australia at 12 noon Central, then has a doubleheader Friday with games against South Korea and Venezuela. Canada is scheduled to play a doubleheader Thursday, facing Venezuela and South Korea before facing Cuba at 3:30 on Friday. The Cubans, the Cup's lone undefeated team, plays the Netherlands (the only one-loss team) on Thursday, after the Dutch play Australia earlier in the day. Cuba's doubleheader is on Friday with Canada and Panama.

The entire schedule is available here on IBAF's website.

With all of Baseball America's League Top 20s now posted, let's tally up the results. The League Top 20 lists can be a good indicator of the strength of teams' systems. It isn't a perfect indicator because it includes some players who have since graduated as prospects and does not include this year's top draft picks that signed late.

The leagues aren't all equal, either. A player that narrowly missed the Eastern League list, for example, could very well be more valuable than a player that ranked in the second half of the Pioneer League Top 20. There are also rare instances when key players don't have enough innings or at-bats to qualify for a minor league Top 20 list.

Also note that, for this study, players are only listed once (even if they made two lists) and are listed with their current organizations. With all that said, let's look at the results. First, the raw totals. . .

But the raw tallies only tell part of the story. While they would look even based on this list, a team would much rather have a group of prospects in Triple-A and Double-A than a group of prospects at the Rookie-level. Here is how the teams stack up when only given credit for prospects in full-season leagues, not including players that graduated from Prospect Handbook eligibility this year (surpassed 130 at-bats as a hitter or 50 innings/30 appearances for a pitcher). . .

[...] Continue Reading »

Cuba blitzed Team USA starter Jeff Marquez (Yankees) for seven runs in three innings, then held off repeated American rallies to stay unbeaten in the 2011 World Cup in Panama. The 8-7 victory Tuesday night keeps Cuba as the favorite to reach the gold-medal game while dropping the U.S. to 4-4 overall but 1-4 in the Cup's unique second-round standings.

The first five hitters in Cuba's lineup—Rusney Castillo and national team veterans Alexei Bell, Frederich Cepeda, Alfredo Despaigne and Yulieski Gourriel—all singled to start the bottom of the first, and the Cubans took a 3-0 lead. [...] Continue Reading »

Yankees minor league righthander Daniel Gil and a pair of Venezuelan Summer League Phillies have earned suspensions for failed drug tests.

The 22-year-old Gil tested positive for Sibutramine, a performance-enhancing substance, in violation of the minor league drug prevention and treatment program. Signed out of Mexico in December 2005, Gil made 32 appearances (seven starts) for high Class A Tampa, going 7-2, 4.66 with 48 strikeouts and 28 walks in 77 1/3 innings.

Phillies righthander Ronald Mendez and lefthander Audrys Mora each received a 25-game suspensions for a "violation of the minor league drug program," according to a press release from Major League Baseball.

Andy Van Hekken (Astros) made five big league starts in 2002 for the Tigers, striking out five in 30 innings. A pro since 1998, the 32-year-old Van Hekken came through for the United States in the World Cup in Panama without the benefit of a strikeout.

Van Hekken pitched eight shutout innings, giving up just hits and no walks, to help lead the U.S. to a 5-0 victory against Panama. With a 4-3 record in pool play, the U.S. earned the fourth and final spot in the medal round from Group A. Van Hekken has now pitched 14 innings and allowed one run in his World Cup starts, both victories. [...] Continue Reading »

Canada thumped the United States 6-1 in World Cup play Sunday, but the Americans stayed alive for a medal-round berth thanks to Taiwan's 3-1 defeat of Puerto Rico.

The loss to the Canadians dropped the U.S. to 3-3 in Panama in the last week, with a game to go Monday against host Panama. Puerto Rico is 3-4 but owns the tiebreaker, having beaten the U.S. head-to-head. The Americans, the two-time defending champions of the World Cup, must win to advance to the medal round. [...] Continue Reading »

Only one of Saturday's World Cup games was a close game to the end, but that one was a thriller. Canada needed 11 innings, even with the international tiebreaker rule, to beat previously undefeated Netherlands 5-4. The victory clinched a spot in the medal round for Canada, which improved to 5-1.

Veteran reserve Emerson Frostad (Astros), who replaced a cramped-up Cole Armstrong (Angels) in the ninth inning, had the game-winning hit in the 11th inning. Both teams had scored a run in the 10th inning, and Frostad's RBI single in the 11th brought home Tim Smith (Royals) with the game winner. Jimmy Henderson (Brewers) got two popouts and a strikeout in the bottom half to keep the Dutch off the board and save the victory.

Lefthander Andrew Albers (Twins) continued his fine tournament with three scoreless innings in relief of Kyle Lotzkar (Reds), who didn't make it out of the third inning.  Armstrong had a solo homer in the fifth, and Dustin Molleken (Rockies) added 3 1/3 innings to keep the game close late.

Canada and the Netherlands are both 5-1 in the group, while host Panama is 5-0. Panama's game with Team USA was rained out Saturday, leaving the Americans at 3-2. Puerto Rico beat Japan 6-0, keeping the pressure on the Americans. Puerto Rico is 3-3 and owns the tiebreaker for the fourth medal-round spot from the group, so the U.S. only guarantees itself a spot in the medal round if it can beat both Panama (rescheduled for Monday) and Canada (a 2 p.m. game Sunday) in the final two games of pool play.

Puerto Rico plays Taiwan on Sunday; if it wins, the U.S. must win both games to advance. If Taiwan wins, the U.S. needs one more victory to advance to the medal round. [...] Continue Reading »

The Netherlands and host Panama stayed unbeaten in World Cup play on Friday, moving to 5-0 to take a commanding lead in Group A by beating North American favorites the United States and Canada.

The Dutch took an early six-run lead and held on to beat the Americans 7-5, while Canada fell 12-3 to Panama.

U.S. pitcher Matt Shoemaker (Angels), the Double-A Texas League pitcher of the year, struggled in defeat, giving up all seven runs in three innings of work. He gave up a three-run first-inning homer to indy leaguer Curt Smith (formerly of the Cardinals organization), and a pair of walks and a single loaded the bases in the third for Orioles prospect Jonathan Schoop. Schoop tripled to drive home three runs and scored on the play on an error by second baseman Joey Thurston (Marlins) to make it 7-1. [...] Continue Reading »