Cyclones 10
Connecticut 3
Aug. 25 at MCU Park
Chase Chambers and Anthony Dirocie each logged three hits, and Manny Rodriguez went two-for-five with a double as our boys topped the lowly Tigers in the rubber game of a three-game set, taking the sole position of second place from the hated Staten Island Yankees in the cutthroat McNamara Division — and moving a half-game up on the weirdly named Auburn Doubledays to take the lead in the anything-goes wild card race.
Brooklyn put three on the board in the first. After hitting a single and moving to third on a base hit, Ross Adolph scored on a wild pitch. Chambers then singled to plate Carlos Cortes, who had singled and moved to second on a grounder before Dirocie singled home Chambers, who had moved to third on a single by Chandler Avant.
The Clones added four more runs in the third. Dirocie singled to drive in Walter “Rabbi” Rasquin, who had singled and moved to third on a single, before Nick Meyer flew out to drive in Chambers who had singled and moved to second and third on two consecutive singles. Rodriguez then cracked a two-run double, driving in Avant, who had walked, and Dirocie.
Brooklyn scored another in the fourth and two more in the fifth, bring the lead to 10. Connecticut scored two in the fourth and one in the fifth, but couldn’t get near our boys’ comfortable lead.
Kyle Wilson earned his fourth-straight win, after pitching five innings of three-run ball. Billy Oxford relieved Wilson in the sixth, before Yeudy Colon took over in the eighth to close it out.
Thanks to its win against Tri-City, Hudson Valley (39–27) still leads the Clones (36–30) by three games, making the wild card our most reasonable route to the playoffs, although winning that is equivalent to earning a participation trophy in youth soccer. So we better win the division.
Our boys head to Vermont for three critical games starting tonight against the Lake Monsters at 5:05 pm. So pack up the kids and the station wagon and head out to Centennial Field in Burlington, Vermont for three great games of baseball. If you leave now, you may make it for the first pitch!
