Cyclones 6
Valley Cats 2
Aug. 16, at Keyspan Park (Game 1)
The Cyclones put on a clinic in the first game of the twin-bill, scoring two runs in each of the first two innings, plus another two spot in the fifth, to cruise to an easy win.
J.R. Voyles and Eric Cambell hit RBI doubles in the first, and in the second, Kirk Nieuwenhuis knocked in two with a single.
The two runs in the fifth came in on Campbell’s third homer of the year.
Starter Pedro “No Relation” Martinez was solid in earning his third win against two losses. He scattered five hits over 5-2/3 innings and struck out six.
Eric Turgeon finished up, giving up a run that was too little, too late.
Valley Cats 4
Cyclones 3
Aug. 16, at Keyspan Park (Game 2)
The Cyclones got on the board first, thanks to a Jose Jimenez double and a two-out RBI by newcomer Juan Lagares. But the Valley Cats stormed back, scoring a single run in the fourth.
After the Cyclones took a 3–1 lead on Kirk Nieuwenhuis’s RBI single, it was all Valley Cats. The boys from Troy scored a run in the fifth off starter Jenry Meija and then two more in the sixth off just-named All Star Yury Santana — who actually gave up no hits, but those two walks killed him.
Because the game was part of a double-header, it ended after seven innings, giving the Cyclones little chance to come back.
Cyclones 6
Valley Cats 5
Aug. 17 at Keyspan Park
Now this is how playoff-bound teams win!
Down 5–3, the Cyclones clawed back for single runs in the seventh and the bottom of the ninth to send this game into extra frames — and then won it in the bottom of the 10th, capitalizing on two horrible Tri City errors.
Tri City had gotten on the board first, on a two-run homer against All-Star starter Chris Schwinden (who actually struck out the side in the inning).
The Cyclones stormed back, with two of their own runs, thanks to a Kirk Nieuwenhuis double, an Eric Campbell RBI single and a Jose Jimenez SAC fly.
Sean Ratliff’s fourth homer of the year added a run in the fourth.
But then, the wheels came off Schwinden’s mini-gem. Schwinden was cruising until the seventh, when he gave up three runs (and only a base-running blunder by the Valley Cats kept it from being more).
But these Cyclones ain’t dead yet. Nieuwenhuis hit a solo homer in the seventh, and Ratliff sent the game into extras with his fifth four-bagger of the year.
The Valley Cats had only themselves to blame for the loss. After Seth Williams led off with a single, Jordan Abruzzo’s ground ball to third led to a throwing error that put runners on second and third. After an intentional walk, Juan Lagares hit a ground ball to the pitcher, who threw to home to start the double play, but catcher Jason Castro threw the ball away and Abruzzo trotted home with the winning run.
Roy Merritt got the win with two innings of impeccable pitching.
The win kept the Cyclones just two games back in the wild-card race.
