Minor League Roundup

[Mikey]

Cubs Minor Leaguers Josh Vitters and Starlin Castro are both All-Stars.

<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Vitters, a third baseman playing for the Cubs' Class A Peoria team, and Castro, a shortstop with the Class A Daytona team, will participate in the 2009 All-Star Futures Game.

The 11th annual XM All-Star Futures Game, pitting the best Minor League prospects from the United States against the best from the rest of the World, will be held at Busch Stadium on All-Star Sunday, July 12, at 1 p.m. CT. MLB.com will provide complete coverage before, during, and after the game, which can be seen live on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD and followed live on Gameday.

Last year, catcher Welington Castillo was the Cubs' lone representative in the Futures Game, played at Yankee Stadium. Castillo, who was invited to the big league Spring Training camp this year, is playing for Double-A Tennessee this season.

Here are the Cubs' 2009 Futures Game representatives:

Vitters, 3B, Class A Peoria (U.S. Team)

When Aramis Ramirez was injured in early May, Cubs fans wanted Vitters promoted to the big leagues. His numbers were good enough. The young third baseman had a stellar May with the Peoria Chiefs, batting .386 with 12 homers and 27 RBIs.

The Cubs' first-round pick (third overall) in the 2007 Draft, Vitters batted .328 last year at Class A Boise with a league-leading 25 doubles, plus five homers and 37 RBIs. The Anaheim, Calif., native, who turns 20 on Aug. 27, was named Midwest League Offensive Player of the Week for May 18-24 after hitting .367 with five home runs, 11 RBIs, one double and a slugging percentage of .900.

Vitters was named to the Midwest League All-Star team this year.

Castro, SS, Class A Daytona (World Team)

This is Castro's first season past Rookie League, and he has shined. The shortstop got off to a slow start in April, batting .200, but hit .368 in May with two homers, seven doubles and 13 RBIs.

Signed in October 2006 by scout Jose Serra out of the Dominican Republic, Castro was named the seventh best prospect in the Cubs' system by Baseball America heading into this year. On June 22, he went 3-for-5 and scored three runs, and followed that with a 3-for-4 game.

A right-handed hitter, the 19-year-old shined at the Florida State League All-Star Game, going 4-for-4, including an inside-the-park home run, and was named Most Valuable Player.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->