Index: wp-includes/author-template.php
===================================================================
--- wp-includes/author-template.php	(revision 11998)
+++ wp-includes/author-template.php	(working copy)
@@ -178,12 +178,13 @@
  */
 function the_author_posts_link($deprecated = '') {
 	global $authordata;
-	printf(
+	$link = sprintf(
 		'<a href="%1$s" title="%2$s">%3$s</a>',
 		get_author_posts_url( $authordata->ID, $authordata->user_nicename ),
 		esc_attr( sprintf( __( 'Posts by %s' ), get_the_author() ) ),
 		get_the_author()
 	);
+	echo apply_filters( 'the_author_posts_link', $link );
 }
 
 /**