MIDSEASON REVIEW

The St. Croix River Bandits (2-12, 1-7) have a pair of conference games this weekend. To be eligible for post season play, a team needs to finish with at least a .500 record in conference to get a bid. The Bandits are only 1-7 in conference and have 8 games remaining, so the feat remains remotely possible, but not probable. When we interviewed Bandits mastermind Jim Rochford, he had this to say about the season so far. "To be absolutely honest, we are shooting to win maybe 4 or 5 conference games this season now that we look at it. With a healthy Gagner we would probably have a .500 record at this point, but we aren't going to make excuses, we need to swing the bat a little better...we have lost too many close games. Last season we went 2-13 in conference with Jay, this season if we can win 4/5 without him, that would be some very good progress. We have a very good and somewhat young core of players, who if we can keep playing baseball, will develop even more than they have so far."

The Bandits usually give out awards at the end of the season which are voted on by the players: but here at the Bandits Blog we are going to be a complete dictator with the MID SEASON AWARDS and overall bandits grades.

Offensive Player of the 1st Half: Kyle Kahl. The Bandits leading hitter and defensive stalwart has improved his batting average from last year's .209, to batting .314 so far this season. Kahl had 14 hits in 67 at bats in 2008, and already has 11 hits this season in 35 at bats. Moreover, Kahl has walked 7 times this season and has struck out only 3 times all season. Kahl also has 5 runs scored, 5 RBI, and 2 Stolen bases.

Defensive Player of the 1st Half: John Peterson. Second baseman John Peterson is a converted shortstop who has played 66 2/3 innings and commited only 1 error. JP is a leader on the field and shows a large range over at 2nd base.

Pitcher of the 1st Half: Trevor Todd . The re-emergence of Trevor Todd is a welcome addition to the Bandits staff. Trevor has both Bandits wins this season, and despite two poor outings against Hudson and Prescott, Trevor has been quieting hitters in June. Trevor still has an ERA around 4.50 but has shown that he can be consistant in the strike zone over the last month.

Most Improved Player of the 1st Half: Kyle Kahl . For all the same reasons listed above.

Mid - Season Grades

Batting for Contact - The Bandits have somewhat improved their hitting over the coarse of the season, but still not to where they ended the season last year or the season before: D+ for a .210 team batting average

Batting for Power - The Bandits are hitting at a pase of 1.071 extra base hits a game, which is up from 1.041 from 2008, but still lags behind 1.137 from '07. Either way, the Bandits have historically been a singles team. A great power hitting team like Isanti hits at an average of 2.3 extra base hits a game which I would consider an A: C- for the Bandits, up from a D+ for the 2 HRs.

Eye at the Plate: The Bandits are down almost a full walk a game from the previous season. Some of this is due to more consistant pitching we have faced. Hard stats: 09 - 3.07 BB/9, 08 - 4BB/9, 07 - 3.90BB/9. Getting 3 walks a game still isnt terrible, the median team in mlb is issued 3.5 walks a game: C-

Strike 3!: The Bandits are striking out at roughly the same pace as last season, with 7.79k/9 vs. 7.88k/p one season ago. This is still way too much, considering that is roughly 30% of the outs in a game. The median team in mlb is sitting a 7K/9, but the pitchers we face aren't nearly as dominant. During the last 4 games, the Bandits have struck out at a rate of 5.30K/9, so hopefully we are on the up swing: C-

On the Bases: The Bandits were known for their running on teams in the first season (when they were a bit younger) swiping 37 bases and being caught 8 times (82% success rate). But the Bandits took a big step back last year only nabbing 13 bases and being thrown out 3 times. (81%). This season the Bandits have 15 stolen bases with only 1 CS, but 7 of those came in one game: C (would be higher if those 7 didn't come at 1 catcher's expense)

Defense: Bandits D has been much like last season with 92.4% on the balls being fielded (as compared to 92.6%). The Bandits have committed more errors per game this season 2.7 vs 2.3 the previous year, however, in 2007 that number was an atrocious 3.3errors/game. The Bandits also are having trouble keeping runners from stealing, mostly from our crafty pitching staff allowing too big of leads: C

Pitching: With our "Big Arm" getting the "Big Hurt" the Bandits staff was struggled this season. They don't have a light's out pitcher like many teams do, and must rely on consistency and defense. Strikeouts are down 1.5k a game and WHIP (walks+hits/inning) is up .34 per inning or 3 walks/hits per 9 innings. However, with that said, the Bandits ERA is hovering right around last year's mark of 5.46, which is impressive after some crushing defeats by non-conference opponents East Bethel 14-4 and Blaine 12-4: C (could be better could be worse, the Bandits have been blown out a hand full of times, and played close games the others.)