Minor League Baseball

The Kansas City Royals have signed three more players to contracts for the 2009 season.

They are J.R. House, Matt Tupman and Franquelis Osoria.

Tupman was a member of the Royals organization in 2008.

House was once a top prospect within the Pittsburgh Pirates organization but spent 2008 with Triple-A Round Rock in the Houston Astros organization.

He hit .306 with 18 homeruns and 60 RBIs. He is a catcher and first baseman.

House has played in the Majors with the Pirates, the Astros and the Orioles.

Tupman also is a catcher, who hit .229 with Triple-A Omaha and has one hit in his Major League career, which is one game.

He singled in his first at-bat with the Royals against the Marlins in Florida in 2008.

Osoria pitched with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2005-2006 and the Pirates from 2007-2008. He has a 4-9 record with a 5.48 ERA in 104 relief appearances.

In 2008 Osoria made 43 appearances for the Pirates. He had a 4-3 record with a 6.08 ERA. He pitched in 10 games for Triple-A Indianapolis and went 2-1 with a 3.55 ERA.

The Pirates released Osoria following the season.

The Royals have invited all three players to big league camp.

Former Minor League player and manager Tom Burgess passed away at the age of 81 on Monday at his home after a long battle with cancer.

He spent the majority of his playing career in the Minors and made only two brief stints in the Majors as an outfielder and a first baseman.

He served as a coach for future Hall of Fame managers Joe Torre and Bobby Cox at the Major League level.

As a Minor League manager, Burgess worked in the Detroit, St. Louis, Atlanta, Texas and New York Mets organizations.

In his two stints in the Majors, Burgess played with the 1954 St. Louis Cardinals and the 1962 Los Angeles Angels.