Au revoir, Rivero
Outfielder Jorge Rivero was sent up to play for the single-A Savannah Sand Gnats of the South Atlantic League this week, and will no longer be swatting for the Cyclones. Rivero’s departure takes away the Cyclones’ best statistical hitter. Rivero led the team with a .339 average on a team-best 21 hits. He spent time with the Cyclones last season, scoring three runs on five hits in 11 games with the team. The native of Cuba’s hitting will be sorely missed.
Extra, extra!
The Cyclones have played in eight extra-inning games with a total of 19 extra innings played. That’s enough for two more full games. In the eight longer outings, the Cyclones have a record of 3–5, with two of the three wins coming in the two longest games of the year.
The Clones have also had three games postponed and another handful of games delayed because of bad weather. Brooklyn’s manager Rich Donnelly said the rough going is something he hasn’t seen in all his time in baseball — and he’s pretty much seen it all.
“It’s either a delay or it’s extra innings,” Donnelly said. “I think we’ve had one clean game, where you play it, win or lose, and you go home. We’re the night raiders. I haven’t seen David Letterman in two weeks.”
Of course, everyone knows Donelly never misses Letterman. Or does he?
Mini-slugger
L.J. “Mini-Maz” Mazzilli has proved he can hit like his dad, former Met Lee Mazzilli. He leads the team with 32 hits and a .299 batting average. As of Tuesday, Mazzilli has had four-straight multi-hit games and has recorded at least one hit in seven straight. He is proving to be the most consistent player on the Cyclones roster.
Power hitters
Matt “Bright Eyes” Oberste and Jared King continue to show why their hitting was talked about so much in the draft and leading up to this season. Oberste has a team-leading 15 RBIs, including a few multi-RBI games. He is known as the team’s best power hitter, and is proving it in the early season. King is a doubles machine, leading the team with eight doubles on 22 hits for the season. His power hitting has helped him get into position to score 13 runs on the season — several of which have been batted in by Oberste.
Save and a ’bute
Cyclones pitching continues to be the best in the league. John Mincone, the Clones’ main closer, has recorded a team-leading four saves on the year with a 0.84 ERA and just five hits allowed on the year.
