Quad Cities manager Josh Bonifay is interviewed after a River Bandits win this year. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz/The Midwest League Traveler)
The 2015 Midwest League manager of the year will return as skipper of the Quad Cities River Bandits in 2016.
This was Josh Bonifay’s first year as skipper of the River Bandits. He led the team to an 88-50 record in the regular season before they were knocked out of the Midwest League playoffs by the eventual Western Division champion Cedar Rapids Kernels. The River Bandits had the best winning percentage in Minor League Baseball (.638) and the second-most wins in Quad Cities franchise history.
Bonifay is the son of former Pittsburgh Pirates general manager and current Cincinnati Reds special assistant to the general manager Cam Bonifay.
Also returning to the River Bandits in 2016 are pitching coach Dave Borkowski and hitting coach Joel Chimelis. Borkowski pitched in the Midwest League when he was a Detroit Tigers prospect, going 15-3 with a 3.46 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 164 IP for the 1997 West Michigan Whitecaps.
Former minor-leaguer Wladimir Sutil is joining the River Bandits staff after coaching rookie-level teams the past two seasons. Next year will be his third as a coach in the Houston Astros organization.
