The Royals have designated Jeff Francoeur for assignment.

By designating the struggling Francoeur for assignment, the Royals cleared more playing time for David Lough and Jarrod Dyson.

"We wanted to get another infield bat up here, and Johnny Giavotella has been swinging the bat very well at Omaha and, obviously, with Dyson coming back and the way that David Lough played there wasn't much opportunity for Jeff to get in there as much as I think he needs to be in order to be effective," Dayton Moore said.

Yasiel Puig, who entered Saturday's game hitting .424 with four doubles, seven home runs, 16 RBIs and a .696 slugging percentage in 24 games, once received attention from the Phillies.

Puig defected from Cuba in June 2012 and signed a seven-year, $42 million contract with the Dodgers.

"We saw him and we liked him," Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "LA jumped up astronomically on him. Good for them; they did the right thing. It's a huge risk. It's paid off, so far."

Amaro said the Phillies also looked into other recent Cuban defectors like A's outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, who signed a four-year, $36 million deal, and Cubs prospect Jorge Soler, who signed a nine-year, $30 million contract.

"We looked at them and had interesting conversations with their people," Amaro said. "But people decided it was worth the risk to go and throw big-time money at guys. You hope those things work out. Hideki Irabu didn't work out. [Jose] Contreras worked out on certain levels. [Rey] Ordonez. Dice-K [Daisuke Matsuzaka]. It's a risk."

The Royals have released Xavier Nady.

Nady had been playing on a minor league deal that he agreed to after being cut in advance of the Article XX(B) free agent retention bonus deadline.

Nady was hitting a robust .310/.382/.486 in 289 plate appearances for the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers.

The Reds have released Mark Prior from his minor league contract with Triple-A Louisville.

Prior has been on the shelf since April 25 with a right shoulder strain.

He posted a 4.66 ERA with nine strikeouts and four walks (one intentional) in 9 2/3 innings.

After an issue with his physical, Matt Krook has decided to attend college instead of signing with the Marlins.

Miami drafted Krook with their second pick, the 35th overall selection.

A reported issue with Krook's shoulder led to the Marlins dropping his offer from slot value to $650,000.

The Marlins will receive a compensatory pick in the 2014 draft as long as they leave their offer on the table through the July 12 signing deadline.

The Yankees are discussing a minor league contract with Ian Stewart.

Stewart has received interest from other clubs and is surveying his options.

Stewart hit just .168/.286/.372 in 133 plate appearances for Triple-A Iowa this season.

Kris Bryant is one of the few remaining first-round picks that have not signed.

The Cubs drafted Bryant No. 2 overall and the two sides are currently at odds in contract talks. The deadline to sign picks in July 15.

They are nowhere close to a deal, according to sources.

Bryant is believed to be looking for something above the $6.7 million slot allotted for the No. 2 pick, while it's believed the Cubs are thinking about something closer to the $6 million range.

Carlos Marmol's tenure with the Cubs is likely over after the club designated him for assignment.

"This is probably the best thing for both Carlos and the Cubs," Marmol's agent, Paul Kinzer, said. "But Carlos hates leaving Chicago. He's loved his time there, having been in the organization his entire career.

"I had another player who was designated for assignment a couple years ago, and that was Edwin Encarnacion, and now he's an MVP candidate."

Marmol went 2-4 with a 5.86 ERA in 31 relief appearances this season.

The Rangers aren't worried about losing Nelson Cruz any time soon to a lengthy suspension due to his involvement in Major League Baseball's ongoing investigation into the Miami-based Biogenesis clinic.

Nolan Ryan said, based on his talks with MLB, the investigation is going to be a "long, drawn-out affair."

Cruz, who could be facing a 50-game suspension, said last week that he hasn't talked to MLB investigators yet.

"I don't know that there's a time frame that they're dealing with," Ryan said. "I know that they're in a fact-finding mode right now, so we'll just have to wait and see how that plays out. But do I worry about losing Nellie here shortly? No, I don't. I really think he'll be with us and we'll just have to see where that goes."

The Orioles have optioned Freddy Garcia to Triple-A Norfolk.

Garcia has the right to decline the option and become a free agent.

The 36-year-old has no plans to retire.