Cats looking for bats

Border Cats manager Mike Steed says the team may look a lot different this year than it did in 2010, which had a sixth place finish in both halves of the season

Mike Steed has set lofty goals for his hitters this summer.

The second-year Thunder Bay Border Cats manager won’t be satisfied unless the team hits about 40 points higher than it struggled to in a forgetful 2010 season.

He thinks he’s got the bats to do it.

“I think we were third or fourth from the bottom overall in the Northwoods League, so we definitely have to hit around .275 or .280 as a team. I know that sounds like a lot,” Steed said on Monday, two days before the Cats are scheduled to kick off their ninth season on the road in Willmar, Minn.

Steed promised the team will look a lot different from last year’s squad, which finished sixth in both the first and second halves, winning 31 times in 69 outings.

“I think we’ll have a lot more power production from our corner guys in Kevin Taylor, from St. Joseph’s University and Alex Guthrie from Loyola Marymount University, whose going to play third base for us,” Steed said.


“We’re definitely a lot stronger up the middle with the bat, with Cullen Mahoney, T.J. Bennett, James Kottares and Brett Kay.”


Then again, it would be hard to fare worse than shortstop Brett Doe did at the plate a year ago, hitting just .121 in 45 games.

Taylor hit .256 with four homeruns and a team-high 32 RBI, while Guthrie hit .240 with three round-trippers and 30 driven in, second most on his college team.

Mahoney offers the most promise, coming off a .406 season that saw him get on base more than 50 per cent of the time and show top-of-the-lineup speed at Arizona’s South Mountain Community College.


If Steed is excited about his hitting, he’s ecstatic about his pitching staff, though fate could temper that glee come Opening Day, which also happens to be the first day of the Major League draft.


Reliever Zak Miller, who posted a team-best seven wins in 2010, is being courted heavily by several major league teams, including the Chicago White Sox who have indicated they may grab the White Rock, B.C. native as early as the third round.


Fellow reliever Brad Delatte has been told to expect a call between the 13^th and 25^th round.
“From a media standpoint (Miller’s) been getting all the hype, and justifiably so,” Steed said.

“He had a great year at Yavapai College, signed with Arizona State. He really is going to be a key for our bullpen. We’re going to keep him in our bullpen and use him in the late innings.

“I think the strongest part of our staff right now is going to be the bridge between our starters to a guy like Zak Miller, our seventh and eighth-inning guys.

“I think this year we have more depth. And when I say depth I don’t mean numbers, I mean quality arms.”

Newcomer Andrew Ruck, an outfielder who was one of the first to report to the Cats this spring, said he’s got high expectations for the team and for himself, as the Whitby, Ont. native tries to forge a professional career.

It was the growing reputation of the league that drew the Lafayette College to Thunder Bay.

“Players notice that. Players like that. They want to come here, especially when better coaches are coming, because It really helps develop players,” Ruck said.

The key for the Cats is avoiding the pitfalls of a winless first road trip, like they couldn’t a year ago, when they lost six straight games away from Port Arthur Stadium and never found their rhythm again.  

“We’re going to be starting on the road, so if we can pick something up right away, which is what we’re expecting to do, then we’re going to come home and continue from there. If we can have a good 10-game start instead of a good five-game start, that’s going to set the tone for the entire year," Ruck said.  



Cat tracks: Delatte and Miller will be joined by returnees Wil Thorp and Ty Wosleger … The Cats will not have righthander Aaron Burke, who is spending the summer upgrading his marks to retain his college eligibility … Steed’s coaching staff is rounded out with Jamestown College’s Jim Klemann and former Cats catcher Danny Benedetti … Both St. Cloud and Rochester had to scramble to find replacement managers at the last minute … The Cats will open the season with just 17 roster players, plus four temporary signees who won’t return to Thunder Bay after their season-opening road trip … Miller is expected to work out for Arizona, the Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays before joining the Cats in time for their home opener on June 6 against Rochester.