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We’ve celebrated the John’s, the Waugh’s and the Chappell’s, now meet Australia’s new sibling sporting super duo – the Dutton’s. Despite the four year age gap and careers in baseball that have separated them by continents, they are united again, for a second season with the Brisbane Bandits.
Guided by their rugby league and baseball champion father, Peter Dutton, the brothers began their playing careers, Brad at age 5, Wade at 4, with local team Pine Rivers Rapids.
Now, they play for the team they’ve supported since the beginning “When I was a kid we went and saw the Bandits all the time, admiring guys like Matt Buckley. Our coach made us put our favourite players’ cards on our hats, everyone else would have big leaguers and I’d be there with Steve Hinton’s” Brad reflects.
29-year-old Brad is the Captain of the Brisbane Bandits and the elder of the two. A natural-born leader, he has no qualms about keeping his team afloat “Sometimes my throat is sore after the game, if I’m talking more and the other guys aren’t and we win, it’s all worth it”. This was honoured in 2007 when he was crowned Coach Of The Year for Queensland Representative Teams.
Brad is your typical fun loving Aussie rouge, a “battler” as Wade describes him, who speaks with a slight American twang, homage to his four years spent playing in the American college system.
His penchant for a roaring time shouldn’t fool anyone, he studied Advertising at Creighton University and as a sportsman he knows how to move “He is very competitive and a little intimidating. He definitely has a presence on the field and you can see he is an athlete” Wade describes.
In 2003 Brad debuted with the Queensland Rams at age 21, building what has become a strong playing portfolio. Including this season, Brad has fought for the Claxton Shield, representing Queensland every year since 2006.
This year, Brad strives to “Personally do well, but honestly I just want to make the playoffs, of course I’d like to bat over .300 as everyone would, but as a team- my goal is to make the top, top four at least”. To get there, Brad will assume the role as stern mentor to his brother Wade:
“When it’s time to get serious, if I see something in his swing or on the field I’ll be one of the first guys to pull him aside and chat to him about it”.
Father Peter, who attends every Bandits game, is a guiding force behind his boys development “I’ve never seen someone who loves baseball so much; he still plays” Wade explains “After a game, we will sit down, he’ll ask so many questions – why did you do that? What happened there? He is very helpful”
The Dutton family shares their love of the game in their downtime, talking at length about the Bandits opposition, debating future strategies and sharing their personal goals.
Although they are close, Brad is quick to assert their differences “First off – I’ve got a better beard. Baseball-wise, I’ve always grown up as being an infielder, I pride myself on defense, I’d call myself a line drive hitter, whereas Wade is more of a power hitter, I’ll admit it – he’s got more power than me”.
Wade is just 25 and his career history reads very similar to Brad’s – a Pine Rivers Rapid until age 18, then off to the US for three years playing for Mount Carmel College in Illinois and then Southern Illinois University. At one stage, Brad and Wade were in the same division. Unfortunately, they never played directly against one another.
Aside from golf and the occasional punt, Wade has a deep investment in baseball, particularly the Australian competition; when he reaches Brad’s age, ideally, he’d like to still be pulling on a Bandits uniform. The Dutton’s Bandits’ spirit has been ingrained in them from a very young age “After running around after foul balls at 8 years old, now I see kids doing the same when I play, it’s pretty cool”.
Modest Wade simplifies his role in ensuring the Bandits make it till the end “Everyone has just got to do their job, I’ve got to get on base, steer, pretty much do the best wherever I’m put, for the team.”
No one is more confident in Wade’s ability then Brad “Wade is a utility player, probably our best and up there for utility players in Australia. You could put him anywhere and he will get the job done. He has already hit a homerun this season and won’t let me live it down”.
A healthy rivalry exists that forces out the competitor in one another – just ask anyone who has witnessed one of their post-training ping-pong matches (Brad maintains that he is seven games up, Wade begs to differ “A lot of paddles have been broken in our time, we’re about square”)
Brad contends Wade is their parent’s favourite, “Put it this way -” Wade laughs “if we ever have a leg of lamb, I always get the bone.”
Looking at the stats, it is easy to understand why there is a buzz in the stands whenever one of the Duttons is at the plate or on the base paths.
Brad boasts a .391 batting average with an on base percentage of .451, a slugging percentage of .413, 10 runs scored and 18 hits from 46 at bats so far in the 2011-2012 campaign.
Wade, has a .293 average, .383 on base percentage, a .439 slugging percentage, seven runs scored, 12 hits and three stolen bases in 41 plate appearances.
The brothers have consistently set the table for the Bandits’ big hitters and at times manufactured runs from seemingly hopeless situations.
In perhaps the best moment in a Bandits game so far was when Wade drove in Brad in the bottom of the ninth to stun the Sydney Blue Sox and conclude the first series of epic home games, resulting in a 2-1 victory. The whole team clamoured to the field in a fit of elation, the Dutton’s at the centre of the celebration.
Together, they will continue their father’s sporting legacy all the way in to the baseball history books; “Whether it’s baseball, golf or cricket, we never want to lose, that’s why it’s good we are finally on the same team” Brad concludes.
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