If You Build It, They Will Come

 This will be the eighth in series on the minor league managers of the different minor league teams from Iowa.  Today we will break down the Quad Cities River Bandits. The River Bandits existed from 1992 to 2003 and 2008-present.  Many major leaguers have come through here, including Joe Mauer, Billy Wagner, Carlos Correa and Johan Santana.   Chris Widger is the biggest name in the group (based on TCDB cards), with Manny Acta, Luis Aguaya and Jim Pankovits having a fair share of base Topps as well.  Mitch Seoane 1994 River Bandits Manager (Angels affiliate) 26 cards in TCDB Steve Dillard 1993-94/2008-09 River Bandits Manager (Astros/Cardinals affiliate) 36 cards in TCDB Boston Red Sox  ( 1975 – 1977 ) Detroit Tigers  ( 1978 ) Chicago Cubs  ( 1979 – 1981 ) Chicago White Sox  ( 1982 ) Jim Pankovits 1995-96 River Bandits Manager (Astros affiliate) 71 cards in TCDB As player Houston Astros  ( 1984 – 1988 ) Boston Red Sox  ( 19...

 It's 4th of July weekend, which means we are getting close to the MLB All-Star game.  This years game features tons of first timers and old-timers, but does not feature a single Iowa Connection.  Iowa hasn't produced much elite baseball talent over the years, and this year continues the same trend.  However, we do have a bunch of what I will deem "Fuzzy Connections".  An Iowa Connection typically consists of one of three things: Born in Iowa, Lived in Iowa, or went to school in Iowa.  (Yes, all three typically mean live in Iowa as well.)  But sometimes a player has a connection to Iowa that isn't exactly a choice. (Yes, I know that Born in Iowa isn't a choice either).  Baseball players are sent to minor league teams at the discretion of their major league clubs, and typically spend a few summer months there one year and are off.  They may not have a residence there, but crash at a host family or maybe a hotel.   So, I don't count i...