MEYER, WARREN TO SIGN WITH MINOR LEAGUE TEAM

Two McDowell Capahas outfielders -- Kevin Meyer and Phil Warren -- will sign minor league contracts with the Chillicothe (Ohio) Paints this weekend.

Meyer and Warren also played at Southeast Missouri State University.

The Chillicothe club is a Class A team in the Frontier League.

Meyer and Warren will play for the Caps on Friday, but will play for the Paints Sunday.

"I'm pretty excited," said Meyer, a switch hitter who usually bats in the leadoff spot. "It was a disappointment not to get drafted and I was hoping someone would pick me up. I think they found out from a scout around this area. They kind of went by word of mouth, basically."

Darin Kinsolving, another member of the Capahas, will also sign with a minor league club, but not until after the Caps play in the NBC World Series later this month.

"I've been waiting for this chance for a while," said Kinsolving, who said he will sign with either the Chillicothe club or the River City Rascals in O'Fallon, Mo. "I still get to go out to Wichita so I get the best of both worlds. I wanted to stay true to Jess (Bolen) and stick with the Capahas until the tournament. I didn't want to leave him or my teammates at this point in the season."

To say the least, the loss of Meyer and Warren -- at this point in the season -- leaves a huge hole in the Caps' line up.

"Right before you go into nationals, it is a big blow," said Bolen, the Capahas' manager. "But if a kid gets a chance and if that's what they want, it's what I want too. I know how much it means to them. I think they'll be able to break into the line up right away."

"It was a tough decision to sign with the club or go to Wichita," said Meyer. "I had to really think about it. I wish I could go with them but they (Paints) just lost a couple guys and they needed some guys right away and they needed a decision pretty fast."

Bolen said the Caps will receive the benefits of Cape Central graduate Ross Bennett, who played last season as a freshman at Baylor University.

Kinsolving, Meyer and Warren will make four Southeast players from last year's team to have played in the professional ranks. Jeremy Johnson is playing in the Advanced Rookie League in the Toronto Blue Jays' organization.

Jeremy Todd, a catcher with the Capahas earlier this season, also joined the minor league ranks earlier this season.