U.S. team selects 2 Tribe prospects

Outfielder Matt LaPorta and pitcher Jeff Stevens will play baseball in Beijing.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Outfielder Matt LaPorta, traded from Milwaukee to the Cleveland Indians last week in the CC Sabathia deal, was picked Wednesday for the U.S. baseball team headed to the Beijing Olympics.

San Diego State pitcher Stephen Strasburg, whose 23-strikeout performance on April 11 brought him national attention, was the lone college player added to manager Davey Johnson’s squad of mostly minor leaguers. Team USA still has one player to be selected.

“We’ve got a great ball club,” Johnson said. “It ain’t going to be no cake walk. We’ve got our work cut out for us. It’s going to be a great stepping stone for all the players.”

The team’s first game is against Korea Aug. 13. Team USA, which won gold in Sydney in 2000, is back in the Olympics after missing out on a bid in 2004.

LaPorta was the top prospect acquired by the Indians in the Sabathia deal. A first-round draft pick last year, LaPorta hit .288 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 84 games for Double-A Huntsville this season. He’s hitting .375 with a home run and four RBIs in four games since joining the Indians organization at Double-A Akron.

Eight major league organizations landed two players on the Olympic roster: Cleveland with LaPorta and pitcher Jeff Stevens; Oakland pitchers Brett Anderson and Trevor Cahill; St. Louis outfielder Colby Rasmus and infielder Brian Barden; Angels infielder Matthew Brown and pitcher Kevin Jepsen; Philadelphia infielder Jason Donald and catcher Louis Marson; Colorado outfielder Dexter Fowler and pitcher Casey Weathers; Detroit infielder Mike Hessman and pitcher Blaine Neal; and Dodgers pitcher Mike Koplove and infielder Terry Tiffee.

The other six players are Baltimore pitcher Jake Arrieta, San Francisco pitcher Geno Espineli, Florida outfielder John Gall, Mets pitcher Brandon Knight, White Sox pitcher Clayton Richard and Texas catcher Taylor Teagarden.

The U.S. team features 14 Triple-A players, seven Double-A players and Arrieta is the lone Class-A representative.

“We knew going in that we wanted a veteran club — a team of guys who have been battle-tested, so to speak,” Team USA general manager Bob Watson said. “But we wanted younger prospects as well. Guys with the fire to go out and showcase their talents on the international stage.”

Johnson, fresh off managing the U.S. squad that lost 3-0 to a World team in the Futures Game during All-Star festivities at Yankee Stadium, is ready to get to work — finally having a set roster.

Johnson, Watson and USA Baseball officials met for about seven hours after the Futures Game to discuss their roster.

Johnson will get to see his team together for the first time during preliminary workouts and preparation late this month in San Jose, Calif.