Brooklyn Cyclones host Staten Island in McNamara Division Showdown

From the desk of:  THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

Preview: Battle of the Boroughs - III

Cyclones lead series 2-0

I - BK 2; S.I. 1

II - BK 7; S.I. 0

III - TUESDAY

GAME THREE

Staten Island Yankees

vs.

Brooklyn Cyclones

FROM

Steeplechase Grounds

CONEY ISLAND

BROOKLYN CYCLONES: Back in Coney Island to host first place showdown versus Staten Island Yankees.

After suffering through 5 straight losses and relinquishing their 1st place standing, the Cyclones are back in business having just completed their second straight victory over the Yankees Monday evening in Staten Island.

It took Brooklyn six pitchers and 11 innings to resolve Sunday's series opener.  Getting on base wasn't necessarily Brooklyn's issue for a change.  They produced 11 hits and drew 5 walks, but went just 2 for 13 with runners in scoring position, and left 9 runners on base.

Vinny Siena finally delivered a clutch 1-out RBI single in overtime giving the Cyclones a slim 2-1 margin of victory, and for a night, moved them within 1.5 games in the standings behind Staten Island.

In Game 2 on Monday, the visiting Cyclones put forth perhaps their finest performance of the season.

Gaby Almonte climbed the hill in Richmond County grounds, and faced 28 batters en route to delivering 8+ stellar innings of work.  He threw an economical 104 pitches with 63 going for strikes, allowed no runs on just 2 hits, walked a pair, and fanned 7 batters.  Almonte earned his league leading 6th victory of the season against 3 losses, and lowered his ERA to a 3.22 mark.  He presently also leads the NYPL in games started and innings pitched.

Unlike Sunday's 11-inning low scoring affair, Brooklyn's beleaguered offense erupted for 7 runs on 11 hits, and drew 5 walks.   Five Cyclones batters enjoyed multiple hit games, while David Thompson, Vinny Seina, and Alfredo Reyes all hit for extra bases.  Lead-off hitter Tucker Tharp went 2 for 3, with 2 walks and 2 runs scored.  Jeff Diehl and David Thompson drove in a pair of runs each.

Monday's victory put the Cyclones one game back over the .500 mark, and got them within just one-half game of the 1st place Yankees.  The series now shifts to Coney Island for Tuesday's Game 3 finale with 1st place in the McNamara Division once again on the line.

Meanwhile, the 3rd place Aberdeen Ironbirds stayed hot on Brooklyn's tail with a 7-0 drubbing of Hudson Valley to remain 1.5 games out of first.  The Renegades fell 3.5 games behind the pace.

NEW YORK PENN LEAGUE ALL-STAR GAME: August 18 @ Aberdeen

Three players will represent the Brooklyn Cyclones in this year's New York Penn League All-Star Game: Gaby Almonte, Vinny Siena, and Alex Palsha.

As previously noted, Almonte leads the league in starts and innings pitched, and recently tied for most wins.  Second baseman Vinny Siena is Brooklyn's leading hitter.  Closer Alex Palsha leads the league with 11 saves, and has yet to yield a run over 18.2 innings pitched this season.




Mike

Brooklyn Cyclones Retake First Place of McNamara Division

From the desk of:  THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

McNamara Division:

1) Brooklyn           20-17

2) Aberdeen          19-18

3) Hudson Valley  19-18

4) Staten Island    19-18

BROOKLYN CYCLONES: Look Who's Number One..., Again!

On Tuesday, the Coney Island Nine and Staten Island Yankees entered that night's action tied for 1st place, with the Aberdeen Ironbirds and Hudson Valley Renegades a mere game behind in the McNamara Division standings.

By Wednesday, all four McNamara teams were tied for 1st place with identical 19-17 records.

The square dance now seems to be breaking up - maybe.

Staten Island lost their second straight to the Batavia Muckdogs, Aberdeen lost to the Auburn Doubledays, while Brooklyn defeated the Hudson Valley Renegades to recapture sole possession of the 1st place.

Moreover, with Wednesday's 6-3 victory over the Renegades, the Cyclones became the fourth team in the circuit, and first team in their division to achieve 20 victories this season.

The McNamara remains the only division with all its members still playing .500 baseball or better.  

The Pinckney Division Williamsport Crosscutters, however, lead the New York Penn League with a 25-12 record.

7/29 - Renegades @ CYCLONES: Game 2

Brooklyn's Kevin Canelon made Wednesday's start at Coney Island Grounds, and was opposed by Hudson Valley's Roel Ramirez.

The Cyclones jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first.  Tucker Tharp and Vinny Siena led-off with back-to-back singles, then scored on Michael Bernal's triple to center field.  Bernal soon scored the third Cyclones' run on David Thompson's ground out to second.

Tucker Tharp led-off the bottom of the 5th with a home run to left, giving the Cyclones a 4-0 lead.

Hudson Valley ruined the shutout in the 6th, but Brooklyn stormed right back with a pair of runs in the 8th.  After DH Brandon Brosher received a 1-out walk, Jeff Diehl connected on a home run to left.

The Renegades scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th, charged to reliever Ruben Reyes to make it a 6-3 final score.

• Starter Kevin Canelon tossed 6 innings, allowed just one earned run on 4 hits, walked one and fanned 7 batters to earn his third victory of the season.  He is now 3-2 with a 3.82 ERA over 33 innings pitched.

Closer Alex Palsha recorded his league leading 8th save of the season.  He has yet to allow a run over 13 appearances and 15.2 innings pitched.  To date, he's allowed 7 hits, issued just 4 walks, and fanned 18 batters.

Now down to .220, the Cyclones team average keeps spiraling precipitously downwards towards the infamous Mendoza Line.  On a team level, I never thought that possible.  Whether they achieve that dubious distinction remains to be seen.

On this night, they managed 9 hits, while usually averaging 7.16 hits per game.  Their 6 runs were also somewhat of an outburst when compared to their 3.75 runs per game average over 37 games played.

Despite Wednesday's output, Brooklyn's team batting average is presently .220, and spiraling precipitously downwards towards the infamous Mendoza Line.  On a team level, I never thought that possible.  Whether they achieve that dubious distinction remains to be seen.

On the bright side, a pair of home runs gave the Cyclones 18 for the season, which ranks them 4th in the league.

Brooklyn, would then be well served by getting just a few more people on base.  They presently sport a league low .297 OBP, making them the only team below the .300 mark.  The Cyclones have drawn the 4th least walks, have the league's least amount of hits, and as you might guess, they trail the league in total bases.

The Renegades and Cyclones will play the rubber game of their series Thursday evening at Dutchess Stadium.



Mike

BK Cyclones: McNamara Division Proving Difficult to Conquer

From the desk of:  THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

McNamara Division:

1) Brooklyn          19-16  .543

2) Staten Island    19-16  .543

3) Aberdeen          18-17  .514

4) Hudson Valley  18-17  .514

BROOKLYN CYCLONES: Division race following same twisting, and looping track as neighboring Thunderbolt roller coaster.

The tourniquet constricting the McNamara Division continues to tighten.  All four teams are playing above .500, while just one game separates the last place club from first.

The light hitting Brooklyn Cyclones remain locked in a tie for 1st place with Staten Island, largely due to the Yankees' current 3-game losing streak.  Meanwhile, both the Aberdeen Ironbirds and Hudson Valley Renegades are tied, just a game behind.

The Cyclones now have 35 games in the books, as the NYPL arrives at their season's mid-point this week.  At this rate of play, the 2015 Wild Card winner could very well come out of the McNamara Division.

That remains to be seen, but the Cyclones had better improve at the plate.  It's clear they're operating with little room for error.  Despite their present standing, the Surf Avenue Sluggers have failed to live up that moniker this season.

They are last in the 14-team circuit in hits, and a .220 batting average, and rank 13th in runs scored, runs batted in, OBP, and slugging.

The Yankees haven't fared much better.  They're 5th worst in the league with a .244 team average.   For the moment, however, parity rules the day.  The Aberdeen Ironbirds are last in runs scored, OBP, slugging, and 13th in hits and home runs, yet, as noted, reside just a game out of first place with a .500 record to boot.

Brooklyn's Vinny Siena leads the McNamara Division with a .313 batting average.  Power wise, Michael Bernal, Brandon Brosher, and Jeff Diehl all rank in the league's top ten with 3 home runs apiece.

Staten Island's Jhalan Jackson is 2nd in the league with a .511 slugging average, while Brooklyn's Michael Bernal is 5th with a .465 mark.

Jhalan also leads the division with 4 home runs, while team mate Drew Bridges ranks in the league's top-10 with 3 homers as well.  Both Jhalan Jackson and team mate Brad Valera additionally rate in the league's top-10 with 18 RBI apiece.

This season, the Cyclones are getting by on pitching.  They lead the league with a 2.74 ERA.  The Yankees trail in 4th place with a 3.25 mark.  The Hudson Valley Renegades are making their mark in 3rd place with a 3.14 ERA.

Brooklyn pitchers have additionally surrendered the least number of hits, home runs, posted the best WHiP, and have fanned the second most batters in the league, while Renegades and Yankees pitchers have issued the least walks.

In fact, 4 of the top 6 teams in WHiP come from the McNamara Division.  In other words, the combined mound work of each club has created a too-tough-to-gauge divisional race with roughly 40 games left in the regular season.

The Cyclones fared poorly during their most recent road trip, getting clawed by the newly minted West Virginia Black Bears, then playing pedestrian baseball against Mahoning Valley.

Brooklyn is now 4-6 in their last 10 games, as is Staten Island.

TUESDAY

BROOKLYN CYCLONES

vs.

Hudson Valley Renegades

FROM

Dutchess Stadium

FISHKILL, N.Y.

After Monday's NYPL scheduled day off, the Cyclones will open a home-and-home series in Hudson Valley against the Renegades with clear first place implications.  The Yankees will host an out of division series against the Batavia Muckdogs.

The rivalry between Brooklyn and the Renegades has intensified over the last three years.

In 2012, the Renegades edged out the Cyclones for the division flag.  Brooklyn gained a Wild Card berth, however, only to get eliminated by Hudson Valley in the first round of the post-season.  Then last season, Hudson Valley outpaced the Cyclones by 4 games en route to another division flag.

Hudson Valley recently enjoyed a brief taste of first place as well.  They're the league's 5th highest slugging team, and lead the league in stolen bases.  On the mound, the Renegades are 3rd in the league with a 3.14 ERA.  They've additionally issued the least walks and are 5th in the circuit in team WHiP.



Mike