Fog. That was the story of the Cyclones 3–1 victory over the rival Staten Island Yankees to sweep the New York–Penn League’s first-round playoff series on Monday night at Keyspan Park.
To be exact, it wasn’t the fog itself, but how the Brooklyns handled all of the problems caused by the fog that enabled the team to advance to the league’s championship series against the Auburn Doubledays.
The Cyclones may be a minor-league team, but their preparation for an opponent is anything but minor league. The team keeps spray charts on each opposing hitter, with the Cyclones’ next day starting pitcher charting where every opponent’s ball is hit. In addition, the team records each pitch thrown by opposing hurlers, indicating the type of pitch, its speed, location and result.
Since the Yankees and Brooklyn had met in 14 regular-season games and one playoff game prior to Monday, that meant that Brooklyn had quite an array of pitching and hitting charts — so they knew quite a lot about the Staten Island tendencies.
Yet all of that information was secondary to the Cyclones’ ability to handle the unexpected delays and resulting changes in strategy resulting from Monday night’s fog — a situation that caused a two-hour delay in starting the game, plus a 50-minute delay after the fifth inning when the fog returned.
The Cyclones started Dylan Owen, their ace, who led the league in wins (he was 9–1 overall) and ERA (1.49).
In his previous start, Owen had thrown 95 pitches, and he was prepared to do the same on Monday, thus possibly pitching until the seventh or eighth inning.
The Cyclones jumped off to a 2-0 lead in the third inning when Matt Bouchard was hit in the neck with a pitch from rehabbing starter Dillon Rasner, who worked for the Yankees — the ones in the Bronx — earlier this season.
Jake Eigsti ran for Bouchard and then scored on a double by Raul Reyes.
After catcher Cesar Cordido advanced Reyes to third on a neat sacrifice, Ezequiel Carrera dropped a soft floater over the drawn-in infield to score Reyes.
Owen was shutting out the Yankees on a masterful performance, but then the fog rolled in, and the game was stopped.
The fog delay was too long to allow Owen to continue.
“I told them I could still go out there,” Owen said after the game. “But they [manager Edgar Alfonzo and pitching coach Hector Berrios] decided the lay-off was too long.”
The Yankees also removed Rasner, but as a major leaguer on rehab, he probably wouldn’t have pitched much more anyway, so the fog advantage went to the Yankees.
The game resumed and Cyclones reliever Brant Rustich held the Yankees scoreless in the sixth.
In the bottom of the frame, Micah Schilling singled against Yankee reliever Nick Chigges.
Ramon Castro, the Mets’ rehabbing back-up catcher and the evening’s designated hitter, was due up. And again, the fog played a role
“Castro was rehabbing because of his back,” said Alfonzo. “But with the long fog delays, it wasn’t right to keep him in the game because his back could stiffen up, so I had to take him out.”
Brandon Kawal hit for Castro.
“All year long, Kawal has been a clutch hitter,” said Alfonzo in explaining his pinch-hitting selection.
After Schilling stole second, Kawal singled, sending Schilling to third. That’s when Lucas Duda, the Cyclones hottest hitter came up. Duda knocked in Schilling with a single to give Brooklyn a 3–0 lead.
After Rustich blanked the Yanks in the seventh, Edgar Ramirez shut down the Baby Bombers in the eighth, striking out two.
With the score still 3-0, Eddie Kunz came on to close things out for Brooklyn. His outing was marred only by a Schilling error that allowed a base-runner, who scored after a single and a SAC fly.
Kunz retired the next two hitters to end the game — and start the partying.
The fog had caused two delays, totaling nearly three hours. Yet, Brooklyn was able to weather the loss of its ace pitcher, and the removal of its DH, both caused by the second fog delay.
“The concentration level was great,” said Alfonzo.
“When you have a young team like this, and they were able to maintain their concentration through both delays, that was outstanding.”
The Cyclones had beaten their cross-bay rivals. All the hitting and pitching charts had helped. But the fog was an unexpected enemy.
The players had kept their focus despite the delays, and the Cyclones now had a two-day break to rest their pitching staff before the championship series.
The Cyclones had beaten a major league pitcher, Rasner, and defeated an even tougher opponent, the Coney Island fog.
Channeling the Bard
Each week, Ed Shakespeare, the bard of Brooklyn baseball, appropriates the iambic pentameter style of his ancient ancestor and offer some final thoughts in verse. This week’s contribution, “Coney Island Fog,” looks at the difficult conditions at Keyspan Park this week.
“The fog,” said Sandburg, “…on little cat feet
Sits looking over harbor and city
On silent haunches.” Thus, Chicago’s treat —
The poet, not second baseman — wrote that ditty.
At Coney Island, Monday, fog crept in —
So silent, shrouding hidden Keyspan Park.
Arriving early, staying late, it made
Its entrances and exits — stealth in dark.
The earthbound clouds did glimmer under lights.
A haunting beauty — uninvited guest
Gone taunting — teasing fans who shone in night’s
Reflection, aiding Cyclones in their quest.
The fog retreats, the field now focused, clear.
’Clones win, prolonging summer’s song, so dear.
