Mallards 2011 Season Recap

By Matt Schneider, PR Intern

The 2011 Northwoods League season for the Madison Mallards was one of the most anticipated and exciting seasons in team history. After a busy offseason that saw the "Duck Pond" receive a $1.8 million renovation, fans were lined up to see their favorite team in action from the very get-go. The team also was under the guidance of a new Field Manager, Greg Labbe. Labbe joined the Mallards as the all-time league in terms of career winning percentage as a manager (.659, 114-59) after leading the Rochester Honkers to a title in 2006. He was joined by new assistant coaches Jason Olson and Luis Raffan as well.

First Half (21-14)

The 11th season of Mallards Baseball started off in record-breaking fashion, beginning June 1st with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Wisconsin Rapids at Witter Field. The opening day victory brought the team to 6-5 all-time in the season's first game, and the team won back-to-back opening days for the second time in team history, duplicating the feat from 2007-2008.

The team was just getting started from that point, as the Mallards would sweep the Rafters in three games and win a 14-2 game over La Crosse at Copeland Park to go to 4-0. The unbeaten start was the longest winning streak to begin a season in team history, but the streak wouldn't last long as the Loggers defeated the Mallards the very next day.

The home opener for the Mallards came on June 7th against Wisconsin and was seen by 6,511 fans. The game marked the first time the newly-renovated "Duck Pond" hosted a Northwoods League contest. The Woodchucks defeated the Mallards 7-6.

Sitting at 5-2, the Mallards would win 13 of their next 22 games to finish the month of June at 18-11 and in the playoff hunt.

As July started, the team continued their winning ways by taking three of the next four games, including a thrilling extra-inning walk-off win over the Battle Creek Bombers on Rhythm & Booms Night July 2nd. Madison was in first place in the South Division with three days left in the half and only had to win two of three against the Eau Claire Express to become first half champions.

The Mallards won convincingly on July 4th, 11-2 in a game that was pitched by second-year Mallard Rusty Shellhorn (Texas Tech). Needing only one win in the final two games, the Mallards would unfortunately drop the next two contests to the Express and wound up tying Battle Creek, Eau Claire, and Green Bay for first place. The Mallards, who were one of only two teams in the entire league to play all 35 games in the half, would lose out of the championship due to a lower winning percentage, a mere .006 behind the Bombers.

All-Star Break

The 2011 All-Star festivities were held at Witter Field, home of the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters. Four members of the Mallards made the South Division squad. Shellhorn and Matt Milroy (Illinois) represented the team's pitching staff, whereas Nate Theunissen (Central Michigan) and Jordan Owen (Tennessee - Martin) came on behalf of the position players. Theunissen and Owen both started the game, with Theunissen at first base and Owen in right field. Rusty Shellhorn pitched the entire third inning, and Milroy made an appearance in the later stages of the game. Despite losing to the North Division All-Stars, Madison's players did well. Theunissen hit a solo home run in the game, and combined with Owen to produce four of the South Division's seven total hits.

One day before the All-Star game itself, Theunissen competed in the home run derby, hitting his only home run deep over the center field wall.

Second Half (16-18)

The Mallards could not shake off the tough end of the first half as the second half got underway. Things started off well as the team defeated Green Bay 4-3 at Joannes Stadium, but would then go on a season-high six game losing streak. Madison was finally able to break their streak and get back in the win column with a 4-1 victory over Waterloo on July 14. The team would then trade off wins and losses until an off day on July 25th, sitting at 6-9 for the half.

Things got very interesting following a loss on the 26th, when a 6-10 team rattled off six consecutive victories, a season-high winning streak. Sitting at 12-10, the Mallards were right back in the playoff picture for the second half as the month of August came around. Unfortunately for the Ducks, the winning streak could not continue, and after dropping four of their next six games, the Mallards were officially eliminated from playoff contention at 14-14. The season ended on August 14th after losing another four out of six games. Madison finished the second half at 16-18, six games behind the champion Battle Creek Bombers.

Despite not making the playoffs, the second half offered two very intriguing headlines. All-Star Nate Theunissen tied a Mallards' single-season record by belting his ninth home run in a 7-1 victory over Eau Claire on July 22nd. Theunissen hit two home runs in the game to tie the record, including a grand slam, the only one the Mallards hit at Warner Park this season.

Another headline was the progression of pitcher Nick Sutherland (Minnesota State - Mankato). Sutherland, who appeared out of the bullpen for much of the first half of the season, was converted into a starter and did not disappoint. Five of the six starts Sutherland made were "quality starts," and the right-handed pitcher never gave up more than two runs in each of those five starts. Before he became a member of the rotation, Sutherland was 0-1 with a 4.68 earned run average. After joining the starters, he went 2-1 with a 3.27 ERA.

Postseason All-Stars

Shellhorn and Thuenissen represented the Mallards on the 2011 Northwoods League Postseason All-Star roster. Shellhorn finished the season with a 5-2 record with a miniscule 2.30 ERA. He also tied the Mallards' single-season record of 12 starts on the mound, set by six other players in team history. Theunssien hit .325 with nine home runs and 31 runs batted in.

Team Leaders

Notable Hitting Leaders:
Nate Theunissen: .325 average, 55 hits, 26 runs scored, 9 home runs, 31 RBI
Jordan Owen: .297 average, 62 hits, 32 runs scored, 6 home runs, 32 RBI, 11 doubles
Justin Parr (Illinois): .296 average, 61 hits, 27 runs scored, 3 home runs, 25 RBI, 16 doubles
Mike McQuillan (Iowa): .286 average, 59 hits, 36 runs scored, 3 home runs, 27 RBI, 12 stolen bases
Willie Argo (Illinois): .285 average, 39 hits, 28 runs scored, 3 home runs, 22 RBI, 16 stolen bases

Notable Pitching Leaders:
Rusty Shellhorn: 5-2, 2.30 ERA, 62.2 innings, 71 strikeouts
Estevan Uriegas (Texas A&M): 3-2, 3.07 ERA, 41.0 innings, 31 strikeouts
Nick Sutherland: 2-2, 3.88 ERA, 58.0 innings, 42 strikeouts
Matt Milroy: 7 saves, 28.1 innings, 44 strikeouts
Tony Bryant: 2-0, 0.96 ERA, 18.2 innings, 19 strikeouts

Attendance Record

The Mallards once again broke the summer collegiate baseball season attendance record by drawing 213,467 fans, an average of 6,278 per game. The record smashed the old record of 207,949, which was also set by the Mallards in 2008.

Mallards Players (Current and Former) Drafted in 2011

A record number of 17 current or former Mallards were drafted in the Amateur Draft. The following players were selected:

John Hicks (2009, catcher) - 4th Round, Chicago White Sox
J.R. Graham (2009-2010, pitcher) - 4th Round, Atlanta Braves
Kyle Gaedele (2010, outfielder) - 6th Round, San Diego Padres
Harold Riggins (2009-2010, infielder) - 7th Round, Colorado Rockies
Adam Davis (2010, catcher) - 11th Round, Baltimore Orioles
Jacob Esch (2009-2010, pitcher) - 11th Round, Florida Marlins
Chris Lamb (2011, pitcher) - 11th Round, Oakland Athletics
Tyler Jones (2010, pitcher) - 11th Round, Minnesota Twins
Josh Parr (2010, infielder) - 12th Round, Arizona Diamondbacks
Mark Ginther (2009, infielder) - 14th Round, Chicago White Sox
Rafael Lopez (2010, catcher) - 16th Round, Chicago Cubs
Joe De Pinto (2008-2009, infielder) - 21st Round, Chicago White Sox
Ryan Bores (2011, pitcher) - 26th Round, Texas Rangers
Chris Burgess (2011, pitcher) - 30th Round, Tampa Bay Rays
Cody Winiarski (2009, pitcher) - 36th Round, Chicago White Sox
Jerad Grundy (2011, pitcher) - 42nd Round, Florida Marlins
Joel Effertz (2010-2011, pitcher) - 43rd Round, Chicago White Sox