BB: D-3 Players in minor leagues/MLB

[OshDude]

Some (relatively recent) updates:
Anderson OF Chris Jarrett retired.
Marietta P Mark Williams signed with the Brewers and was assigned to Rookie Helena.
Whitewater P Ben Versnik was promoted from Short Season to Single-A.
East Bay OF Archie Gilbert moved from Double-A to High-A.
Pomona P David Colvin moved from Rookie to Short Season.
Albright P Casey Lawrence moved from High-A to Single-A.

[OshDude]

Menlo pitcher Chris Mazza signed with the Twins.
Grove City pitcher Erik Arnesen was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for games ending Aug. 15.
The Cardinals released Trinity (Texas) pitcher Eric Binder.
St. John Fisher pitcher Dan Jurik moved back up to Braves Single-A from Rookie.
East Bay outfielder Archie Gilbert moved back up to Double-A after a short stint at High-A.

[OshDude]

It appears as though Concordia Chicago catcher Nick Skala and Keystone pitcher Blaine O'Brien will be back in college next season. Both were juniors. I didn't see news of their signings anywhere.

I think Skala has a good chance of going in a higher round next year. O'Brien was drafted for the second time in June. There's little reason to think he won't get drafted a third time next year.

[OshDude]

Confirmed on the CUC site that Nick Skala is returning for his senior season.

Saw an interesting article on Baseball America that listed college juniors as "losers" in this year's draft. Granted, the piece was geared toward D-I players who went in the top third of the draft, but it definitely follows that juniors outside that range were also affected. Here are two quotes that caught my eye, acknowledging that the first one doesn't have much impact in D-III. It's recommended reading for the final section on college juniors.

"The 15th of August is no fun for anybody," said North Carolina State recruiting coordinator Tom Holliday. "But if we're going to keep the rule the way it is, it's going to be a D-Day. Kids are going to be reluctant to sign early if they know they can wait until the last day and get paid big money."
...
"They are assaulting our game, assaulting our talent base by overpaying the high school player, then insulting the college player by underpaying him," said another recruiter. "They're not going to have any good college players to watch if they keep signing all these marginal high school guys for $650,000. They're depleting our supply of quality young prospects in case they become good, rather than letting them come to college and get good."

[WLCALUM83]

OshDude, the quote you cite hits home in 2 other sports as well-(look at how many hoops players have turned pro right out of high school and/or left college early for the draft. Or, look at what football player Maurice Clarett tried to do a few years back.

[OshDude]

Two of our guys are in MiLB.com's fifth annual "Moniker Madness" tournament of 64 players with unique names. Sure, it's silly. And a strange kind of fun, like minor league baseball's best promotions are.

Our guys in the "tournament":
Oxy's Brooks Belter, a 9-seed in the Icicle Reader bracket, opposes Zeke Spruill in the 1st round
Chapman's Kurt Yacko, a 15-seed in the Farmer Works bracket, opposes Jurickson Profar in the 1st round

The 1-seeds are Seth Schwindenhammer, Beamer Weems, Deik Scram and Rougned Odor. I'm not sure how the latter loses, but that's why we play the game.

Click this link to view the entire bracket and vote. Round 1 voting started today and ends on Sunday.

They're down to the Final 4: Schwindenhammer, Weems, Odor and No. 2 seed Dusty Harvard. I'll still take Odor.

Was scanning the bevy of draft pick signings from the week and stumbled upon a potential Moniker Madness contender: Cubs MiLB first baseman Rock Shoulders.

[OshDude]

The Astros released Brandeis pitcher Nelson Figueroa.

[Jim Dixon]

Alvernia's Anthony Recker called up to the Oakland A's to replace Landon Powell.

[OshDude]

The Astros released Brandeis pitcher Nelson Figueroa.

The Pirates signed Figueroa.

[OshDude]

Padres move Marietta pitcher Mike DeMark from Double-A to Triple-A.

Dodgers move Mount St. Joseph pitcher Steve Matre from Rookie to Single-A. Matre helped lead the AZL Dodgers to the AZL title. He tossed a scoreless eighth inning and recorded a hold in a 4-2 win in the title clincher.

Giants moves Whittier pitcher Tom Vessella from High-A to Triple-A.

Alvernia's Anthony Recker was selected as the catcher on the all-PCL team. Recker is currently with the Oakland A's.

[OshDude]

The Marlins called up UW-La Crosse outfielder Vinny Rottino. Rottino made his Marlins debut as a defensive replacement on Tuesday. He went 0-for-1 in Florida's 7-4, 12-inning loss to the Mets. Rottino was last in the majors in 2008.

[OshDude]

The Phillies called up Eastern Mennonite catcher Erik Kratz today.

[OshDude]

Keystone first baseman Yazy Arbelo is one of six players up for MiLB.com's Best Class A Hitter of 2011 award. Online fan voting ends Oct. 20. You can vote for Arbelo (31 HR, 95 RBI) or one of the five others here. As of this post, Arbelo had 3 percent of the vote.

[OshDude]

I'm sure there are others, but these are players assigned to the Instructional League: UW-Stevens Point outfielder Cody Koback (Red Sox), Cortland pitcher Nicolas Blanco (Royals), North Park pitcher Mike Giovenco (Royals), St. Olaf pitcher Ben Hughes (Rockies).

[OshDude]

The Marlins outrighted UW-La Crosse utility Vinny Rottino. He's now a free agent.