Judge Orders Ankiel’s Father to Prison Early

The father of St. Louis Cardinal rookie pitcher Rick Ankiel was sent to prison early on a drug conviction because of his recent arrest on a felony weapons charge.

In West Palm Beach, Fla., U.S. Magistrate Judge Ann Vitunac ordered Richard Ankiel to immediately begin his prison sentence of almost six years.

Ankiel pleaded guilty last year to two counts of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana. He was free on $100,000 bond awaiting his sentence to begin July 24.

In his most recent arrest, Ankiel was arrested and charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Rick Ankiel, a 20-year-old left-hander, is 3-1 for the Cardinals and has hit two homers.

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Texas Ranger left-hander Kenny Rogers missed Tuesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays because of a strained shoulder. He injured himself during Friday’s 3-2 loss against the Angels. Rogers said his shoulder tightened after making a throw to first to get the last out of the seventh inning.

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The Toronto Blue Jays sent struggling right-hander Roy Halladay to triple-A Syracuse and recalled right-hander Peter Munro. Halladay was 2-4 with an 11.97 earned-run average in eight games, including seven starts. Last week, the Blue Jays moved him to the bullpen, shifting left-handed reliever Lance Painter to the starting rotation.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates called up outfielder Emil Brown from triple-A Nashville on Tuesday and swapped two pitchers. The Pirates called up right-hander Josias Manzanillo from Nashville and designated right-hander Jose Parra for assignment.