Naturals First Half Review

The good feelings continued on Opening Day in San Antonio when the Naturals never trailed while beating the Missions in a game that saw the Naturals rap out 14 hits, including a hit by Jose Duarte in the Naturals first at-bat as a team.  But it would be a while before the Naturals would get another 14-hit effort; and four games before the Naturals would get another win.  They returned to the Natural state 2-4 and in need of a boost.  Opening Night, in front of over 7,800 of their newest fans, they didn't get relief as the Missions took a 7-1 decision, a loss that kicked off a homestand that saw the Naturals post the same 2-4 record they did on the road trip.  Their second road trip, a brief weekend trip to North Little Rock, went worse than their first trip, with the Naturals losing all four games to the Arkansas Travelers by a combined seven runs and returning with a 4-12 record.  The Naturals would finish out the month on a roll, winning seven of their last ten games, including a four game sweep of the Travelers at Arvest Ballpark.

Despite the Naturals hitting just .217 as a team in April, the month was not without highlights.  Kila Kaaihue hit seven home runs, most of them coming at Arvest Ballpark.  On Opening Night, Kaaihue became the first Natural to homer at Arvest Ballpark, and went on to cement a reputation, at home at least, for majestic looking, tape measure shots that disappear into the night sky.  Starter Carlos Rosa, who started both of the games in the season-opening road trip that ended in Naturals victories, came within nine outs of a no-hitter on April 25^th against the Travs, yielding just one run in eight innings.  Rosa was by far the Naturals ace, and he was promoted to (Triple-A) Omaha after the first homestand in May.

The month of May began for the Naturals just as the month of April had ended--with lots of wins.  Northwest Arkansas vaulted themselves right into the thick of the Texas League North Division race, going 11-3 in the first half of May and sweeping a Tulsa series at home in the process.  By the end of the month of May, the Naturals had the best home record in the Texas League and one of the best home records in all of the minors.

The road continued to give them their ups and downs, however.  Although the Naturals were able to get three of four in Tulsa during their hot first half of May, the Dickey Stephens doldrums struck again as the Naturals lost three of four on the road in North Little Rock, losing the series finale on getaway day in extra innings.  That game would prove to be crucial, as well, as it allowed the suddenly-hot Travelers, who couldn't seem to get themselves right during April, to get within two games of the first-place Naturals.  Had Northwest Arkansas been able to take that game, they'd have left town with a four game lead going into 12 games against the powerful lineups of Midland and Frisco.

The Naturals finished the month of May against those South Division clubs.  Frisco had won at a near .700 clip for most of the season but gradually weakened in the first half as they lost their big bats to promotions to Triple-A.  The Naturals were able to put up a 7-5 record in twelve games against the two squads between May 21^st and June 2^nd, winning four of six at Arvest Ballpark and splitting the road contests.

The bats heated up in May as well, as the team hit over .300 in May behind the blistering bats of Juan Richardson (.346) and Jose Duarte (team leading 18 RBI in May).  Speed continues to be the Naturals primary offensive asset, as the club closed in on 100 steals in mid-June and has a reasonable shot at eclipsing 200 steals as a team.

The Naturals and Travelers began a four-game set at the 'Vest in early June with the same gap they had left the last time they'd met - two games, with the Naturals in first place.  The Travs proceeded to take three of four from the Naturals on their home turf, and packing things up with a tie for first-place.  The Naturals did, however, manage to get the first game behind a dominating performance from Blake Wood, a young rightly recently promoted from (Advanced-A) Wilmington. 

Springfield meanwhile, who hadn't been heard from in weeks, slowly creeped back into the race, behind the dominating pitching of former Diamond Hog Jess Todd and two hitters, Steven Hill and Isa Garcia, promoted from (Advanced-A) Palm Beach to complement league batting leader Shane Robinson, who hit nearly .400 for the season's first two months.  In the second week of June, with but a week to go to determine who would get the automatic berth into the Texas League playoffs, these three teams had things all knotted up.

A Run in the Second Half??

The Naturals should be well comprised to compete for the second-half division title, as well.  As the entire rotation is in their first-season at the Double-A level, it is a reasonable bet to stay intact for the duration of the season.  They may get some bullpen help as well if some pieces from the Wilmington pen, such as Aaron Hartsock, who was in for a short cameo in late May, returns, and Tyler Chambliss, who is the Blue Rocks closer, earns a promotion.  Offensively, the cast should stay relatively intact, as well, good news for the Arvest Ballpark fans of Kaaihue, Duarte, Richardson, and equally popular OF Brian McFall.  The Naturals will be particularly counting on improved production from 3B Mario Lisson, who could still meet or exceed his numbers from last season (.285, 8 HR, 61 RBI, 23 SB) with a hot second half.