ALL-STAR CUTLER EARNS CALL-UP
Cutler, a 22-year-old from San Francisco, finished his run through the Midwest League with a league-best .351 batting average through 66 games. A 14th-round pick in the 2008 draft, he also homered four times and was second on the River Bandits with 44 RBI, while his .410 on-base percentage was tied for fourth in the league.
The Cal-Berkeley product will be best remembered for a blistering month of May in which he hit safely in 22 of 26 games and posted a .410 batting average to earn St. Louis Cardinals Minor League Player of the Month honors. Half of those 26 games were multi-hit efforts and he put together two different seven-game hitting streaks during the month. He eventually took over the lead in the league's batting race on May 27 and his average soared as high as .397 after going 4-for-4 with a home run in a June 5 game at Burlington.
Taking Cutler's spot on the active roster is Jack Cawley, a 23-year-old backstop from the Bronx, New York. A 34th-round pick in the 2008 draft out of Pace University in New York City, he was a collegiate teammate of 2008 River Bandits first baseman Matt Arburr. After beginning his pro career with a .330 batting average for the Rookie-level Johnson City Cardinals in 2008, Cawley was off to another hot start in 2009, batting an even .300 through nine games for the short season Batavia Muckdogs.
UP NEXT: The River Bandits complete their four-game road series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels on Tuesday at 6:35 p.m. and return to Modern Woodmen Park for a six-game homestand against the Lansing Lugnuts and Clinton LumberKings beginning on Wednesday. It starts with the Optimists Youth Appreciation Night, featuring Halloween in July as well as a Rhythm City Casino Guaranteed Prize WINS-day. The first 2,000 fans to Thursday's ballgame will receive President Barack Obama bobblehead dolls while everybody will enjoy $2 draft beer and fountain Pepsi products on a Thirst-day Thursday that will pay tribute to the hit sitcom, The Office. A Fireworks Friday follows with an appearance from Chicago Bears great and Hall of Famer Gale Sayers. A bobblehead doll featuring Steve Dillard, Quad Cities' all-time winningest manager, will be handed out on Saturday courtesy of Mel Foster agent Keith A. Allborty, and the Rockin' Saturday also includes a post-game concert by Elvis Himselvis on Elvis Night! Fans arriving early to Sunday's game will receive the 2009 River Bandits Team Poster thanks to Swiss Valley Farms on another Tailz 'Er Waggin' Dog Day of Summer, also a U.S. Bank Family Sunday. Lastly, the homestand concludes with a special 1:00 p.m. start time on Monday, a Summer Camp Day and Harry Potter Day!
ABOUT THE BANDITS: The Quad Cities River Bandits drew more than 103,000 fans in the first half of the season for only the third time in team history. Ticket sales, concessions, merchandise sales, sponsorships and even Kids' Zone revenues are all up over last season, which was one of the team's best in history! Banditwear, mini-plans, and individual game tickets are on sale for the 2009 season by calling (563) 3-BANDIT or heading to www.RiverBandits.com. But hurry - good seats are going fast!