Breaking Down the Numbers

I left off the other day with this:

With that said, that Bandits had gone 5-7 after starting the year 0-11. The Bandits final 12 games of the season saw them hit .225 (34 points higher than beginning of the season), sport a team ERA of 3.89 (vs. 6.23), have 2.4 errors per game (vs. 3.1) but only give up only 1.1 unearned runs per game. The run diffential for the 2nd half of the season was 49 runs scored to 60 runs allowed, only an 11 run difference over 12 games (.92 runs/game) - as compared to 5.5 runs a game in the first half. These stats (especially the hitting) are not out of this world - but they are a marked improvement.

Lets examine who was responsible. First, was the leaps and bounds made by the pitching staff. Yes, during the final half of the season the Bandits played Siren, Hager City x2 and Bay City, but they played playoff teams: Hudson, River Falls, Ellsworth, Menomonie x2, and a barely squeaked out of the playoffs Osceola team x2. The pitching staff consisted of three studs: Will Ball (17.1 IP, 3.12ERA), Jim Rochford (29.2 IP, 3.94ERA), and led by Trevor Todd (52.1 IP, 3.44ERA). Those three pitchers combined to post a 3.53 ERA during the 2nd half of the season, and threw all but 4.2 innings of those games.

Will Ball's first season as a Bandits was solid. Although he had inconsistent control at times this season, he proved to be a valuable asset to the pitching staff. Ball will be playing for Hibbing Com. Col. this fall and spring and should be back and ready to pitch for the Bandits next season.

Old Man Jim Rochford had another fine year, with victories over Hudson and Bay City. Rochford actually logged 4 more innings than in 2008 and walked 10 less batters, but struck out 10 less batters also. "I don't even try to strikeout anyone anymore, you have to be 0-2 or 1-2, and the 7 or 8 batter, for me to even think about it. Although it seems like I strike out more 3 - 4 batters because they want to hit the ball so hard. We'll see how many years I can keep this up before good teams figure it out."

Trevor Todd was the ace of the staff during the 2nd part of the year, pitching in 11 of the 12 games,starting 5 games and relieving 6 games. The only game Todd did not see action in was a non-conference game in Hager City. Todd only threw 11+ innings before the turning point in Siren and was hammered in 3 his 4 outings, giving up 10 runs in 12IP. But Todd was relentless in the 2nd half of the season. Todd shut the door on River Falls for the Bandits first conference win of the season. Todd pitched 2 complete games against Osceola, with a victory on the final game of the season. Todd set personal highs for IP, K, and W, and a personal low in ERA.

The increased batting average was more of the addition to a couple key players than it was to individuals increasing their own stats. A few players (Curtis Roebuck, Jeff Johnson, and Steve Siqueiros) slightly increased their batting stats in the 2nd half of the season. The rest of the team hit the same or a bit lower than the first half. The infusion came from high schoolers Matt Vold and Gus Koecher. Gus Koecher played in 5 games and hit .273 in the lead off position, which would tie him for 3rd on the team for batting average if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. Matt Vold hit an incredible .556 in 5 games with the Bandits, mainly hitting in the 3-hole.

More to come in part 3.