August 4, 2007: Vol. 30, No. 30

The pro baseball season must be quite a relief to the Cyclones, especially for their many players just out of school. No more teachers … no more exams … no more report cards …

Well, not so fast.

Now they take their exams on the playing field, and instead of multiple choice questions done at the rate of one or two a minute, each hitter’s decision to swing at or take a pitch must be made in a tenth of a second.

It’s no cake walk for pitchers either – as their work is graded by 8,000 professors in the Keyspan Park stands every night.

On July 28, the Cyclones played the 38th game on their schedule – half of their 76 games. Here are the mid-year grades. (All stats are for the season’s first half).

Lucas Duda (first base) – Duda has power potential that has manifested itself in a club-leading nine doubles, but just one homer. At Keyspan Park, the prevailing ocean wind from right field can’t be helping this lefty-hitter’s psyche. The USC Trojan has been doing an adequate job at bat and at both first base and left field. Grade: C+

Micah Schilling (second base) – He’s been an outstanding lead-off man. Schilling leads the team with an on-base percentage of .444. At one point he had reached base in 23 consecutive games and has touched a bag in 32 of the 34 games in which he’s appeared. He has a .303 batting average, nine steals and shows a decent glove. Grade: A

Matt Bouchard (shortstop) – Defensively, he’s been making the plays. On offense, he’s hitting .263. The Georgetown Hoya hustles and has stolen five bases. Grade: B−

J.R. Voyles (third base) – He’s the surprise of the year. He hit .317 and was an RBI machine, knocking in 20 in only 25 games. He was hit in the face with a pitch on July 27 and is hoping to soon return to the line-up. Grade: A

Brandon Kawal (left field) – He has forced his way into an outfield job. He started hitting in early July and hasn’t stopped with a .343 average in 67 at-bats. He could increase both his power (he has only two extra base hits, both doubles) and walks — he has only four. Grade: B+

Raul Reyes (center field) – Only 20 years old, Reyes covers a lot of ground in the outfield. At-bat, he has shown good power with five homers and 20 RBIs in 37 games. His big problem involves strikeouts. He has 48 K’s, striking out more than once in every three at-bats. His potential is A+. Grade: B

Will Vogl (right field) – A throw-back player, Vogl slams full-speed into the right field bullpen fence to catch foul balls, and actually catches fly balls with two hands. Hitting .289 with nine stolen bases. For a corner outfielder, he needs to increase his power (only one homer). Although he’s from California, he’s a former star at St. John’s. Grade: B+

Brandon Jacobs (catcher/first base) – Jacobs was a New York-Penn League all-star last year as a catcher, and he should repeat, probably as a receiver. Bouncing back and forth between catcher and first, he has four homers and 18 RBI. He’s done an outstanding job calling pitches for the Cyclone staff as the hurlers lead the league in ERA. Grade: A

Jake Eigsti (infield) – Has played all infield positions and made only two errors. Batting .296, he has 19 RBI. Grade: B+

Dylan Owen (right-handed starter) – A sure-fire all-star, Owen has a 5-0 record with a 1.93 ERA. Has 33 strike-outs in 32 innings and a mere six walks. Grade: A+

Nick Carr (right-handed starter) – A 2-0 record in 34.1 innings, Carr has 44 k’s with only 11 walks, and a 3.15 ERA. Grade: B+

Dillon Gee (right-handed starter) – Talk about control – Gee has pitched 28 innings and has allowed only two walks, a big reason for his 1.61 ERA. Grade: A+

Nick Waechter (right-handed starter) – Up and down as a starter, he has a 2-2 record with a 4.15 ERA. Grade: C

Josh Appell (left-handed reliever) – The Long Islander is showing that the third time may be the charm, as this season has been the best of his three tries with the Cyclones. Used in short relief, often against left-handed hitters, Appell has a new delivery and a 1.80 ERA. Opponents are batting only .154 against him. Grade: A

Dan McDonald (right-handed reliever) – From Seton Hall, McDonald has been effective as a late reliever and closer, with three saves and a 2.40 ERA. Grade: B+

Steve Clyne (right-handed reliever) – Needs to cut down on walks – 11 in 13 innings. Grade: C

Grady Hinchman (left-handed reliever) – Batters hitting only .214 against him. Grade: B+

Edgar Alfonzo (manager) – First half 26-12 record, best in the league. Going neck-and-neck with the Cyclones’ best regular season total, compiled with Alfonzo’s 2001 Brooklyn club. Grade: A+

Channeling the Bard

Each week, Ed Shakespeare, the bard of Brooklyn baseball, will take a page from his ancient ancestor and add a bit of iambic pentameter to all our lives. This week’s contribution is called, “The Wall”:

“Their son is on the wall,” he said to me.
A couple, seventies, a brief good-bye.
They’d seen the game on Friday night, you see.
Their hats — they said it all — “FDNY.”

The Cyclones lost the game that night — mere shrug.
A loss afield — those boys all back next game
To try again. The stands — they caused a tug
On hearts – I know that others thought the same.

The sons and daughters who weren’t there,
The fun and play — the things the mind will tap.
The youthful Cyclones calling back a care.
An empty seat was here and there – a gap.

That seat could take one more. I still recall
Those words he said, “Their son is on the wall.”

©2007 The Brooklyn Paper