BIG PRAISE HURLED AT SOMERSET AS CLOSER'S CONTRACT IS SOLD TO ROYALS

It has to make Atlantic League officials feel good when a departing player heaps praise. Such was the case this week when Kansas City purchased left-handed closer Andrew Dobies from Somerset.

While admitting it was a two-edged issue to be leaving his teammates yet getting a renewed opportunity in a major league organization, the 27-year-old Dobies told Ryan Dunleavy of mycentraljersey.com "playing for Somerset helped revive my career. This is the purest form of baseball I've played in a long time."

'Purest form of baseball' has to mean Independent Baseball where the No. 1 objective is to win. We hear this time and again from managers, coaches and players who have been in both the affiliated and Independent minor leagues in recent years. I heard it directly (well, via telephone) this week from longtime major league star Bill Buckner, who was featured in this week's subscriber-driven Independent Baseball Insider column. Buckner is in his first season as a manager, working at Brockton, MA in the independent Can-Am League.

Dobies went to the Royals' Double-A farm club in Springdale, AR. It is called Northwest Arkansas. A former third-round draft choice of the Red Sox, who also played in the Chicago White Sox system, did not allow an earned run in 18.1 innings from May 28-July 10. He was chosen for the Atlantic League All-Star Game, and left Somerset with a 2-3 record, five saves, a 2.81 ERA and 31 strikeouts (only three walks) in 32 innings.

TOUGH BREAK FOR STEPHEN DREW, D-BACKS

Former Camden shortstop Stephen Drew, who anchors the infield for the Arizona Diamondbacks, is gone for the season with a broken right ankle. What a tough ending for both Drew and the improving National League West team.

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