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09/24/2006 12:35 AM ET
Surgery likely for Dodgers prospect
MRI shows LaRoche has torn labrum in throwing shoulder
By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com
Andy LaRoche hit .315 with 19 homers and 81 RBIs in 117 games with Jacksonville and Las Vegas. (Jerry Hale)

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LOS ANGELES -- Third-base prospect Andy LaRoche, who didn't get a September callup despite an impressive Minor League season split between Double-A and Triple-A, underwent an MRI this week and is likely to require surgery to repair a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder.

LaRoche, 23, played 62 games at Jacksonville and 55 games at Las Vegas. He batted a combined .315 with 19 homers and 81 RBIs in 117 games. LaRoche had a .410 on-base percentage and a .514 slugging percentage. In most categories, he posted better numbers after he was promoted to Triple-A.

"He's probably going to have (surgery), but it hasn't been confirmed," said Roy Smith, the Dodgers vice president of player development.

Smith also said that the club is not yet prepared to announce its Minor League managers and coaching staff for the 2007 season.

Las Vegas, managed by Jerry Royster, finished third, 24 games back. Jacksonville, managed by John Shoemaker, finished first in the first half of the season, second in the second half, and went 0-3 in the playoffs. Class A Advanced Vero Beach, managed by Luis Salazar, finished fifth. Class A Columbus, managed by Travis Barbary, finished fourth.

Rookie level Ogden, managed by Lance Parrish, finished second. The Gulf Coast Rookie League entry, managed by Juan Bustabad, won the Eastern Division title and lost in the championship series.

In other news, first baseman James Loney, who split the season between Las Vegas and the Major League club, and right-handed pitcher Mark Alexander have been named the organization's 2006 Branch Rickey Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively. Both players will be honored Sunday in a ceremony prior to the Dodgers' final regular-season home game of the year against the Arizona Diamondbacks at 4:10 p.m. ET.

Loney led all of Minor League baseball with a .380 batting average. In 98 games with Las Vegas, the left-handed hitter had 33 doubles, eight homers and 67 RBIs. He won the Pacific Coast League batting title by 43 points.

Alexander, a 2004 20th-round pick, is a reliever who spent most of the season with Double-A Jacksonville, where he posted a 3-2 record with 26 saves and a 0.96 ERA. He spent July 17 to Aug. 20 with Las Vegas, going 2-1 with one save in 14 1/3 innings. His 27 combined saves led all Dodgers Minor Leaguers for a second consecutive season, and he was tied for second in the Southern League (26).

Baseball America has ranked the Dodgers' two first-round draft picks this year, left-hander Clayton Kershaw and right-hander Bryan Morris, as the top prospects in the Gulf Coast and Pioneer Leagues, respectively. Preston Mattingly, a sandwich first-round pick, is ranked 11th in the Gulf Coast League. Josh Bell is the second-best prospect in the Pioneer League, while pitcher Steven Johnson ranked 15th.

Ken Gurnick is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.