Catcher hit for cycle, led circuit in batting and slugging to become first River Bandit to win honor since 2012
DAVENPORT, Iowa (June 11, 2014) - Quad Cities River Bandits catcher Brian Holberton has been named the Midwest League Player of the Month for May, Minor League Baseball® announced on Wednesday. In May, Holberton led the Midwest League with a .388 batting average and a .638 slugging percentage, and last week the Houston Astros Player Development Department named him Quad Cities' May Player of the Month.
Holberton, who turned 22 Tuesday, was among the 10 players selected as Player of the Month for May in their respective leagues. Each honoree will receive an award from MiLB® in recognition of their performance in May. He is the first River Bandit to win Midwest League Player of the Month from MiLB® since Colin Walsh won the honor for his performance in June 2012.
Holberton's 1.063 OPS (on-base-plus-slugging) ranked second in the Midwest League, and he posted 11 multi-hit games in May. In the month, Holberton also ranked tied for sixth in the league in doubles (nine), was seventh in on-base percentage (.425) and 10th in extra-base hits. Holberton became the first Quad Cities player since 2005 to hit for the cycle May 18, when he went 5-for-5 with five RBIs in a 10-3 win at Kane County.
The Charlotte, N.C., native also won the River Bandits May Player of the Month, an award chosen by the team's field staff. In 39 games this season, Holberton is batting .314 with 14 doubles, four home runs, 24 RBIs, a .366 on-base percentage, .507 slugging percentage and .873 on-base-plus-slugging (OPS).
UP NEXT: The River Bandits return home at 7 p.m. Friday for a Fireworks Friday presented by Smart Toyota of the Quad Cities, WLLR and WQAD, and the team will wear special pink jerseys that will be up for auction on Breast Cancer Awareness Night presented by Genesis Health Systems and the Quad-City Times. To order any of the River Bandits 2014 ticket plans - with new lower prices - call the River Bandits box office at 563-324-3000. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $40. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.
