Brooklyn Cyclones: Yanks Invade Coney For Last Battle Between the Boroughs

From the desk of:   THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS - IV

 

The Final Showdown

 

 

CYCLONES LEAD SERIES 2-0

I - BK 5; S.I. 1

II - BK 3; S.I. 2

III - Sunday

 

Cyclones Lead Season Series 8-5

 

 

 

 

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  No Division Title For You.

 

CYCLONES AND MUCKDOGS FANS GUARANTEED A WILD FINISH

 

 

Facing a must win situation with only four games left in the regular season, the Seaside Sluggers defeated the Yankees 3-2 Saturday evening, thus maintaining their precarious one game Wild Card lead over the hard charging Batavia Muckdogs.  For Brooklyn, the Wild Card is the only race left.  Despite winning Saturday night, the Hudson Valley Renegades also won; defeating the Aberdeen Iron Birds; to finally outpace the Cyclones and clinch the 2012 McNamara Division pennant.

On a slightly different front, Brooklyn also gained victory Saturday night in the Battle of the Borough's last engagement on Richmond County soil.  The season's final contest between the Cyclones and Staten Island Yankees will be played today, Sunday afternoon, in Coney Island.  The greater city face-off however, is already won.  To the Cyclones, go the spoils.  In thirteen games played to date, the Brooks own an 8-5 record over their outer Borough rivals.


In the Ballpark at St. George, a crowd just shy of 5,000 watched their Bombers get shutout over eight innings.  Cyclones starter, Julian Hilario, completed 6.1 innings of stellar work.  He allowed four scattered hits and only issued one walk.  He struck out seven batters before handing the ball off to reliever Beck Wheeler with one out in the seventh inning.  Wheeler secured the last two outs without harm.  Replacing Beck Wheeler, Matthew Koch kept Staten Island scoreless in the eighth inning.


Brooklyn scored single runs in the third, sixth and seventh innings.  Brandon Nimmo crushed his sixth home run of the season; a solo shot; in the third.  With the bases loaded in the sixth, Kevin Plawecki scored from third base on a wild pitch.  Malkis De La Cruz led off the seventh inning with a double, and scored on Phillip Evans' RBI single, giving the Cyclones their 3-0 lead.


Into the ninth they went.  Matt Koch returned to the hill and immediately surrendered lead-off back to back doubles.  Confusion on the base paths kept runners at second and third however.  But that mattered not.  Matt Koch was pulled in favor of closer Tyler Vanderheiden.  The first batter Tyler faced, Daniel Lopez, singled to drive both base runners home, and get the Yankees within a run.  Vanderheiden then surrendered a second consecutive single.  Then out came Coach Donnelly; there went Tyler Vanderheiden; and in came John Mincone to put out the fire.  With the tying run at third base, Mincone struck out his first batter, and induced a pop-up from the last Yankees batter of the game.


John Mincone chalked up his sixth save of the season.  Starter Julian Hilario improved his won/loss record to a 4-4 mark.  Overall, Brooklyn pitching limited Staten Island to two hits in twelve at bats with runners in scoring position.  For the game, nine Staten Island hits equalled Brooklyn.


Including today, Brooklyn will have the benefit of playing their final four regular season games on  Steeplechase grounds.  After today's series finale against the Yankees, the Boardwalk Bums will end the season versus the Lowell Spinners.  Batavia will stay home to host the Auburn Doubledays for two games, then end the season with a pair of home and home contests versus the Jamestown Jammers.


To reiterate, Brooklyn has a one game lead over the Batavia Muckdogs in the Wild Card race, with only four games remaining in the regular season.  The race for the McNamara Division title is over.  Hudson Valley clinched.

Let's Go Cyclones!

** Yankees Graffiti; The Smart Crew - Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Mike.BTB

Brooklyn Cyclones: Four Coney Island Hurlers Pitch Like All Stars

From the desk of:   THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

New York Penn League - All Star Game Final:

N.L. All Stars  8

A.L. All Stars  1

BROOKLYN CYCLONES - Four Cyclones Pitchers Contribute 3.2 Scoreless Innings To Help National Affiliates Defeat Americans In New York Penn League All Star Game.

Preview

BOXSCORE

Four Cyclones pitchers made the trip west to Ohio representing Brooklyn, and the Mets organization, in this season's eighth annual New York Penn League All Star Game, played Tuesday evening at Eastwood Stadium; home of the Mahoning Valley Scrappers.


As the visiting team, the National League affiliates trounced the American League affiliates by an 8-1 final score.  Nine National hurlers kept the American team scoreless through eight innings until a solo home run in the ninth inning hit by Connecticut Tigers third baseman Tyler Hanover off Tri City Valley Cats pitcher Blake Ford ended the Nationals' shut-out effort.


The Boys from Brooklyn did well.  They combined on 3.2 innings pitched; allowed two scattered hits; walked none; and struck out six batters.  Luis Mateo was awarded the presitgious starting assignment.  He pitched an inning and struck out two.  John Mincone was the third pitcher used in the game, and pitched in with 0.2 innings, with both outs coming via the strikeout.  Hansel Robles followed with one inning, and surrendered a hit.  Gabriel Ynoa was given the seventh inning.  He surrendered one hit, and struck out two.  Together, they did Brooklyn proud.





Mike.BTB

Brooklyn Cyclones: Sweep Monsters in Three; Four Cyclones Head to All Star Game

From the desk of:   THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

BROOKLYN CYCLONES - The Coney Island Nine Slay the Vermont Lake Monsters 10-5, and Sweep Three Game Series.

Four Cyclones Heading to the All Star Game.

THREE STATEN ISLAND YANKEES SELECTED.

With the weekend's action complete, Brooklyn heads into the New York Penn League All*Star break one game behind in the McNamara Division standings to the first place Hudson Valley Renegades.  Their lead in the Wild Card race now stands at six games over the State College Spikes.  When games resume again on Wednesday, there will be twenty-two games left in the regular season.


On Sunday, the Surf Avenue Sluggers completed a three game sweep in Coney Island over Vermont by pummeling the Lake Monsters 10-5, while Lowell helped the Brooks by defeating the Renegades 5-2 up in Peekskill, N.Y.


After four and a half innings, the game was tied at four apiece.  In the second inning, a double followed by an RBI single put Vermont on the board first against Brooklyn starter, Rainy Lara.  Vermont increased their lead in the fourth.  After a lead-off triple, another RBI single made it a 2-0 game.


In the bottom of the fourth, the Cyclones struck back.  Three consecutive singles by Dimas Ponce, Phillip Evans, and Kevin Plawecki, loaded the bases with no outs.  A double by Alexander Sanchez scored Ponce, and Evans.  And a sac-fly by Nelfi Zapata scored Plawecki from third.  Richie Rodriguez then drove in the fourth Cyclones run of the inning with a single delivering Sanchez.


In the top of the fifth, the Lake Monsters tied the score against Rainy Lara.  Three singles and a walk led to two runs.  But Lara, composed himself to strike out the last two batters of the inning and keep the score at four apiece.  The Cyclones allowed Lara to exit the game on the winning side with a go-ahead home run by Dimas Ponce; his first; in the bottom of the inning.


Rainy Lara pitched five full, allowing seven hits and four earned runs.  He walked one and struck out six before giving way to Logan Taylor in the sixth.  Taylor pitched two stellar innings, surrendering nothing, while striking out three.


In the bottom of the sixth, Brooklyn blew the game open with four more runs.  With one out, Eudy Pina singled, and Brandon Nimmo followed with a double.  Then Dimas Ponce stepped in, and continued his individual onslaught with another single driving home both runners.  Kevin Plawecki drove Ponce home with another RBI single.  And Alexander Sanchez continued his assault as well, with another single to drive in Plawecki.


In the bottom of the seventh, the Cyclones scored once more for good measure.  Eudy Pina scored on one of Vermont's three errors committed in the game.


After Logan Taylor, relievers David Wynn and John Mincone shared eighth inning duties flawlessly.  Then it was up to Tyler Vanderheiden to close out the game.  I do not know what it is about closers being ineffective in non-save situations, but VandyMan followed tradition.  He allowed three hits and one run before securing three outs.  But no harm done; Cyclones win by a 10-5 final score.


Starting pitcher Rainy Lara racked up his seventh win of the season against just one loss.  Today, Rainy Lara is now the New York Penn League leader in wins, and is only four strikeouts behind his team mate, Luis Mateo (67), for tops in the circuit in that category.


The Cyclones scored their ten runs on the strength of fourteen hits.  Dimas Ponce, Kevin Plawecki, and Alexander Sanchez all had three hits each.  And Brandon Nimmo is continuing right along in the lead-off spot, with two more hits in five at-bats.  Brooklyn batted 6 for 12 with runners in scoring position.  He is one of only seven NYPL pitchers with a WHIP below the 1.00 mark.  Not incidentally, four of those seven pitchers are Brooklyn Cyclones!  And to cap things off, the league's top three strikeout leaders are also all Cyclones.

2012 New York Penn League All Star Game

From Eastwood Field, Home of the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, Ohio

New York Penn League All Star Game Rosters

The Brooklyn Cyclones are sending four representatives to the eighth annual NYPL All*Star game; all pitchers.  And that's only appropriate, as strong pitching has marked the Cyclones' season, and dominated the League so far.  Three starting pitchers; Luis Mateo, Gabriel Ynoa; and Hansel Robles will perhaps take a turn on the mound.  And if things go well, reliever John Mincone; Brooklyn's fourth selection; can see some action as well.  As highlighted above, the League's top winner, Rainy Lara, although deserving, will be unavailable.

This year's All Star Game will be played at Eastwood Field, home of the Mahoning Valley Scrappers in Ohio.  The teams are broken up into American League and National League affiliation.

Brooklyn's chief rival, the Staten Island Yankees will be sending three players to join the American League squad.  Pitcher James Pazos; first baseman Matt Snyder; and outfielder Taylor Dugas will represent the Richmond County Baby Bombers in Tuesday's game.

STATS:

* SP - Luis Mateo

* SP - Gabriel Ynoa

* SP - Hansel Robles

* RP - John Mincone

Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ Brandon Nimmo Thriving in Lead-Off Spot

From the desk of:   THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  Coney Island Nine Take Opening Game Versus Auburn Doubledays.  Remain Two Games Behind Hudson Valley Renegades.  Johan Santana Scheduled to Make Rehab Appearance Sunday.

The Cyclones started this home stand by taking two of three games from the Connecticut Tigers.  They took the rubber game Friday evening led by the pitching of starter Luis Cessa, and relievers, Matthew Bowman, and John Mincone.  The three combined on nine innings, and allowed two hits all game.  Luis Cessa surrendered those two hits.  He pitched five full, walked none and struck out four before leaving the game on the winning side of a 3-0 lead.  Matthew Bowman then pitched three masterful innings in relief, allowing no hits, issuing no walks, while striking out three batters.  John Mincone tossed a scoreless ninth for his fourth save of the season.


The Cyclones scored all their three runs in the first inning.  Brandon Nimmo and Phillip Evans led off with back to back doubles to open the scoring.  Then with two outs, Stefan Sabol smashed his third home run of the season to give Brooklyn their 3-0 lead, and eventual final.


On Saturday, Brooklyn welcomed the Auburn Doubledays to the park at Coney Island and continued right along with their strong pitching.  Hansel Robles was the night's starter and gained his third victory of the season against just one loss.  For seven full innings, Hansel pitched three hit baseball, while allowing Auburn just one unearned run set up by a Dimas Ponce error in the sixth inning.  Otherwise, Brooklyn's starting pitcher was superb in issuing no walks and striking out eight batters.


Paul Sewald pitched the eighth inning and got touched for two hits, but nothing more.  Tyler Vanderheiden pitched the ninth inning to notch his eighth save of the season.


Brooklyn scored a run in the first, and the game stayed that way through the next four innings.  Brandon Nimmo led off Brooklyn's first at-bat with a double, and later came around to score on a passed ball, to give Coney Island a 1-0 lead.


Auburn tied the game in the sixth, but after a good stretch, Brooklyn came back with three runs in the seventh inning.  After Dimas Ponce led off the inning with a double, three straight walks gave the Cyclones a 2-1 lead.  With the bases still loaded and one out, Brandon Nimmo scored on a sac-fly off the bat of Kevin Plawecki.  Then Alexander Sanchez singled to drive in the third run of the inning.


And that's how this one ended, with a 4-1 final score.


Brandon Nimmo continues to excel in the lead-off spot.  In Saturday's game, he was 2 for 4, with two doubles, and two runs scored.  He now has five hits in eleven at-bats during the home stand.  And since being inserted into the lead-off spot ten games ago, Brandon Nimmo is seventeen of forty-one; good for a .415 batting average.  He has now elevated his season batting average to a .271 mark.  That's significant considering on July 25th, after game one of this last ten game stretch, he took a .229 batting average home with him.


The Cyclones (28-17) are 7-3 in their last ten games.  But so is Hudson Valley.  The first place Renegades (30-16) continue to set the pace while Brooklyn remains two games behind in the McNamara Division standings.


On Sunday, Johan Santana is scheduled to make a short rehab appearance in Coney Island for the Cyclones, as he works towards taking the mound again for the Mets by next Thursday or Friday.




Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ The Travelling Brooks Drop Game One in Ohio

From the desk of:   THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:

Mahoning Valley Scraps Together a Win in Game One.

HITTING WOES HAMPERING BROOKLYN

By nature, the New York Penn League is a pitcher's league.  No one knows this better than the Cyclones.  Their hurlers are dong a fine job carrying the club this season.  And historically, they always have.  But there is no hiding the fact the Cyclones' offense is not as potent as say, past year's versions; ...not nearly.  Saturday's line-up was for intent and purpose, their regular starting line-up.  Among them, Alexander Sanchez tops the list with a .273 batting average.  At the opposite end, Juan Carlos Gamboa is sporting a .202 average.  The collective starting line-up so far is batting .237 this season.  And now they've slipped two games behind in the McNamara Division to the first place Hudson Valley Renegades.


After taking two of three in Batavia, the Cyclones arrived in Ohio Saturday to play the Mahoning Valley Scrappers.  Hansel Robles was Brooklyn's starting pitcher.  Luis DeJesus started for the Scrappers.


After five innings of work, Robles left on the winning side of a 2-1 game.  He surrendered five hits, among them a home run to Mahoning's Joe Sever, but not much else.  Hansel struck out seven and did not walk a batter.  In six innings pitched, Luis DeJesus left with his team trailing by one.  He allowed five hits and walked none, while striking out two.  Brooklyn scored in the first and third inning off him.  After Brandon Nimmo led-off the game with a single, Kevin Plawecki drove him home with a two out double.  In the third, Eudy Pina scored on an RBI single by Jayce Boyd.


John Mincone came in to relieve Hansel Robles for the sixth, and pitched two scoreless innings, allowing two hits, and striking out one.  For the Scrappers, Scott Peoples came out of their bullpen to take over for DeJesus.  He kept the visitors scoreless in the seventh, and eighth innings, issuing one walk, striking out two, with no hits against.


David Wynn took over pitching duties for Brooklyn in the eighth.  And once he walked the lead-off batter, traditional thinking says trouble promptly follows.  But the Cyclones quickly erased Wynn's base on balls by turning over a 5-4-3 double play.  No matter though, trouble found its' way through to the Cyclones anyway.  The very next batter reached first base safely on an E-3 by Jayce Boyd.  Mahoning Valley's Joe Sever (remember him?) then stepped up again, and launched a two run home run; his second of the game; to give the Scrappers a 3-2 lead.


In the top of the ninth inning, Jayce Boyd and Kevin Plawecki both looked at strike three.  Stefan Sabol at least offered and struck out swinging against Mahoning's Cody Penny, who closed out his second save of the season.  Scott Peoples earned the win in relief.  Brooklyn's David Wynn suffered his first blown save and loss, pitching for the Cyclones.


Rain delayed the game for a little over an hour.  The Cyclones record now stands at 23-17, and as losers of six of their last ten, have now even slipped behind the State College Spikes by percentage points for the Wild Card.  Game Two of their series in Ohio is scheduled for late Sunday afternoon.




Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ Brooks Take Staten Island in Twelve; Keep Hold on First

From the desk of:   THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

Battle of the Boroughs - II

Brooklyn and Staten Island Tie Series 2-2

BK 1; S.I. 0

S.I. 4; BK 2

S.I. 3; BK 1

BK 2; S.I. 1

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  The Surf Avenue Sluggers Keep a Hold On First Place; Gain Series Split Versus Yankees.


They went into the ninth inning tied at one apiece.  The visiting Staten Island Yankees' starter, Corey Black, tossed six innings, surrendering only a run to Brooklyn on six hits, and only one walk.  He struck out six before giving way to the bullpen.  Then Yankees' Josh Romanski tossed a scoreless seventh inning, and Dietrich Enns pitched the eighth without harm.

For the Cyclones, Hansel Robles was making his sixth start of the season, and looking for his third win.  But after pitching eight superb innings, he left to a no decision.  He allowed Staten Island six hits, one walk, and limited them to one run, while striking out a season high nine batters.

The Surf Avenue Sluggers took a 1-0 lead in the fourth.  After Dimas Ponce led off with a double and was thrown out at third trying to stretch it into a triple, Phillip Evans followed with another double.  Alexander Sanchez then hit the third double of the inning off Corey Black to drive home Evans.  The Bombers finally tied the game in the seventh off Robles.  Jose Rosario doubled home Matt Snyder with the tying run.

John Mincone took over for Hansel Robles and pitched a scoreless ninth inning.  Mariel Checo; Staten Island's fourth pitcher; was called upon to pitch the home ninth against the Brooks.  He kept them scoreless, striking out two, to send the game into extra-innings for the second time this series.

Mincone retired the Yanks in order in the tenth.  But in the bottom half of the inning, Mariel Checo pitched himself into, then out of trouble.  Eudy Pina led off the home tenth with a single.  A sacrifice bunt and an E-3 moved him to third base.  Checo then intentionally walked the bases loaded.  Kevin Plawecki followed with a fly-out to center but with no advancement of the runners.  Alexander Sanchez then ended the threat with a grounder to second.

In his third inning of work, John Mincone faced the minimum in the eleventh.  Charles Basford relieved Mariel Checo for the Bombers, who set the Cyclones down quietly.  Then Brooklyn's Tyler Vanderheiden was brought into the game to pitch the twelfth inning of play.  He escaped a first and third situation with two outs, and struck out Exicardo Cayones swinging to stop the Yanks cold.

In the bottom of the twelfth with Charles Basford pitching, Brooklyn's Dimas Ponce singled with one out.  Kevin Plawecki hit a two out single that moved Ponce to third base.  Then Alexander Sanchez finally drove home the game winning run with an RBI single to center field.


After some superb relief work out of John Mincone, and a stellar eight inning starting performance from Hansel Robles, Tyler Vanderheiden earned his first win in relief this season, off one inning of work and walking two batters.  Hey, it's like that sometimes.  Staten Island's Charles Bradford gets credited with the loss.  Bradford is now 0-2 this season.


The Brooklyn Cyclones earned a split in the second installment of the Battle of the Boroughs.  Games One and Four were both won by the Cyclones in extra innings.  Thursday night's Game One was a fifteen inning affair.  Overall, the Cyclones lead the season series against Staten Island five games to three.


Brooklyn needed this win to keep pace with the Hudson Valley Renegades, who won their game 8-2 over the Aberdeen Iron Birds.  The two teams are now tied for the McNamara Division lead with identical 21-13 records.  Staten Island is next, trailing Brooklyn and Hudson Valley by seven games, and now sport a 14-20 season record.


The Cyclones' win also gets them one game (9-8) over the .500 mark at home.  The Cyclones will host Aberdeen for two games before hitting the road for a pair of series against Batavia and Mahoning Valley.  The Cyclones have played very well on the road and will look to improve their 12-5 mark away from Coney Island.  But first, they'll look to gain some separation from the Renegades by taking on the McNamara Division's last place club in the Iron Birds.




Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ Strengthen Hold on First Against Renegades

From the desk of:  THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  Eleventh Inning Win Opens Up Two Game Lead Over Hudson Valley in McNamara Division.


In the clash for the top spot of the McNamara Division, visiting Brooklyn shut out the Renegades 3-0 in their place on Sunday to open a one game lead in the standings.  Starter Luis Mateo pitched six strong innings to pick up his third win against no loses.  He surrendered a mere three hits, walked none, and struck out six.  David Wynn followed out of the bullpen to pitch the next two frames.  He struck out three before giving way to Tyler Vanderheiden, who picked up his fourth save of the season.

Cole Frenzel launched his first home run of the season leading off the second inning.  And the Brooks picked up two more runs on an E-5 in the third inning, capping off the night's scoring.

In Monday night's game at the Ballpark at Coney Island, the Cyclones led 1-0 after three innings thanks to a Eudy Pina bomb to center field.  But they promptly surrendered two runs in Hudson Valley's next at-bat.  In the home fourth, RBI by Jayce Boyd and Brandon Nimmo put Brooklyn back on top by a 3-2 score.  Then in the fifth, the Brooks picked up an insurance run on Stefan Sabol's RBI single.

Cyclones' starter Luis Cessa, pitched 4.0 innings.  He gave up three hits and walked three, while allowing two earned runs.

The Hudson Valley Renegades rallied late against Cyclones' reliever Beck Wheeler.  With the 'Clones ahead 4-2, Hudson Valley plated three runs on a Ryan Dunn bases clearing double, giving the Renegades a 5-4 lead in the seventh.  They would add an insurance run in the eighth against Juan Urbina.

In the eighth inning, the Cyclones got one back.  Jayce Boyd led off with a triple to straight away center field, and soon scored to make it a 5-6 game heading into the ninth.

Reliever John Mincone retired the Renegades in order in the top half of the ninth.  Then for last licks, Kevin Plawecki stepped up to lead off for the Cyclones, and promptly hit a laser over the left field wall off Marcus Jensen to tie the game at six apiece.

Into extra-innings they went.  John Mincone pitched into his second frame.  And with the go ahead runner on third, Mincone struck out the last two batters of the inning.

Brandon Nimmo led of the Cyclones tenth and struck out swinging on a 3-2 fastball down the middle of the plate.  Eudy Pina drew another full count but worked out a walk.  Juan Gamboa then worked out a second consecutive walk issued by Marcus Jansen, putting the winning run in scoring position.  After a short fly to center, Phillip Evans stepped up with two outs.  He launched one high and deep to left, but not far enough.  This game was headed for an eleventh inning.

John Mincone came out for another inning of work and effectively retired Hudson Valley for a third straight time.  For his part, he allowed three hits, walked one, gave up no runs, and struck out four.

In the home eleventh, Brooklyn faced Kris Carlson now in relief for Hudson Valley.  After Kevin Plawecki was hit by a pitched ball, Cole Frenzel flared a ball over the second baseman's head to set up a first and second situation with no outs.  Stefan Sabol worked out a walk to load the bases for Jayce Boyd.  Playing in his first game as a Cyclone, he was having a hot night at the plate; batting 3 for 5 to that point.  Boyd then lined a fly to shallow right.  Pinch running for Plawecki at third, Jonathan Clark tagged up and took off for home, successfully scoring the Cyclones' winning run.

The Surf Avenue Sluggers have now opened up a two game lead over the second place Renegades.  This was Brooklyn's eleventh win over four loses.  The teams will now get on the bus and head back into Hudson Valley for the final game of this home-and-home series.




Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ First Road Trip Starts With a Loss

From the desk of:   THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  Welcome, to the First Losing Streak of the Season.


That's right, the Brooks have lost two in a row.  Making their first trip out of New York City, the Cyclones were reduced to a little swirl down in Aberdeen Friday night.

The rain came, delayed the start of the game, then left.  And after two innings, things were looking decently enough for Brooklyn after they jumped out to a 1-0 lead.  Alex Sanchez led off the second with a double, then advanced to third base on a passed ball.  He scored when Kevin Plawecki grounded into a fielder's choice.

In the third inning, Brandon Nimmo hit his second double of the season.  Unfortunately, that would be Brooklyn's last hit of the night.  Three Aberdeen pitchers combined on a two-hitter.

Aberdeen tied the game in the sixth inning off Cyclones' starter, Julian Hilario.  The Brooklyn starter pitched admirably.  In six full innings, he allowed five hits and one earned run.  He walked one batter and struck out six.

Aberdeen scored four times off Darwin Frias in the seventh to secure a Game One win.  The Iron Birds scored one more time in the eighth off John Mincone, for a 6-1 final.

This was the Cyclones' second consecutive loss, after having dropped the final game in their series against the Yankees on Thursday.

In tonight's game, Brooklyn will throw Rainy Lara at the Iron Birds.  Aberdeen will go with Cameron Coffey in the mound.



Mike.BTB

BKN Cyclones ~ Brooks Dump on Staten Island's Home Opener

From the desk of:   THE CONEY ISLAND NINE

BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS - II

FINAL

Brooklyn Cyclones        4

Staten Island Yankees   1

Brooklyn Leads The Battle 2-0

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:   Baby Bombers' Opening Day Foiled By Cole Frenzel, and Coney Island's Pitching.


With more stingy pitching, the Boardwalk Bums took another cue from their big brothers in Flushing by limiting the Staten Island Yankees to two hits, in the second game of their home-and-home 2012 Season Openers.  Having secured their Opening Day victory Monday night in Coney Island with a 2-0 victory over the Yankees, the Cyclones took the trip over the Verrazano Bridge Tuesday and secured a second victory in Staten Island's Home Opener.


Luis Mateo started for Brooklyn, and pitched 5.2 innings of two hit ball.  He served up one solo home run to DH-Saxon Butler.  Otherwise, Luis walked just one batter, and whiffed nine of the twenty-one Baby Bombers he faced.  John Mincone took over with two outs, and finished the sixth inning for Mateo.  John was credited with a hold after pitching two more innings and posting zeroes, with one strikeout.  Jeremy Gould was then given a crack at his first save opportunity in the ninth and struck out the side.


As a returning player from 2011, Cole Frenzel exerted some offensive leadership.  In the second inning, Kevin Plawecki was hit by a pitch.  After Cole Frenzel followed with a single, Plawecki scored on an E-5 off the bat of Stefan Sabol.  Frenzel later came around to score on Jonathan Clark's sac-fly, for a 2-0 Brooklyn lead.


In the third, the Yankees cut the lead by one.  But the Cyclones regained their two run lead in their next at-bat.  Cole Frenzel scored again on a fielder's choice.  In the seventh, the Brooks scored their fourth and final run.  Brandon Nimmo scored on Cole Frenzel's RBI single.  Cole finished the night batting 3 for 5, with two runs scored.


Brandon Nimmo recorded his first hit as a Cyclone in the third inning, and finished the night 1 for 3, with two walks and a run scored.  The Cyclones had numerous opportunities to blow the game open.  They left eleven runners on base, and batted 1 for 13 with RISP.


They'll play game three of this four game series in Staten Island again Wednesday, before the series moves back to Coney Island on Thursday.




Mike.BTB