Gilbert Is Pan Am-Bound

It may not be the best news for the Albuquerque Dukes, but Shawn Gilbert received an offer he couldn’t pass up.

Gilbert was one of 24 minor league players selected to represent the United States in the Pan Am Games, which start July 25 in Winnipeg, Canada. The Pan Am Games are the baseball qualifier for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The United States needs to finish first or second to qualify for the Olympics.

Gilbert is leading the Dukes with a .331 average, with eight home runs, 42 RBIs and 21 steals in 86 games through Sunday. A natural infielder, Gilbert has played mainly in the outfield this season, and his versatility has allowed the Dukes to use him at every position this year except catcher and first base. Gilbert will miss about 20 games for the Dukes, who are 43-46. Gilbert will start in the Triple A All-Star game today before joining Team USA in Tucson on Thursday.

San Antonio (13-10, second half): Outfielder DaRond Stovall has made a splash since being assigned to the Missions after signing on June 30. Stovall, who played in 62 games with the Montreal Expos last year, was hitting .381 with four home runs and 10 RBIs through 10 games.

San Bernardino (12-6, through Sunday): Randey Dorame continued his dominance with a 10-1 victory over Bakersfield Sunday. Dorame gave up three hits and one run in six innings, striking out eight. He improved to 11-2 and lowered his league-leading ERA to 1.72.

Vero Beach (9-10, second half): Victor Alvarez pitched 7 2/3 innings of three-hit shutout ball in a no-decision against St. Lucie on Friday, and that lowered his ERA to 1.97, third best in the league. He received a promotion to Double A San Antonio on Monday.

Yakima (13-10): Outfielder Lamont Mathews started the week tied for second in the Northwest League with five home runs and was second in slugging percentage (.638).

Great Falls (10-16): The pitching has been shaky; through Sunday the staff ERA was 5.20. One bright spot is reliever Carlos Ortega, who started the season with 16 innings without an earned run.