Lowell 12
Cyclones 0
Aug. 5 at Lowell
Gaby Almonte was hit hard and the Cyclones only mustered four hits in a 12–0 blowout loss to the Spinners that featured two Brooklyn infielders taking the mound.
By the time first basemen Pedro Perez and Zack Mathieu took the mound in the seventh and eighth innings respectively, the Clones were already down 11–0. But they threw two scoreless innings to rest a beleaguered pitching staff.
The Spinners jumped out to a first-inning lead on a two-out, run-scoring double from Victor Acosta. Josh Ockimey followed with a two-run homer.
Lowell took advantage of two Branden Kaupe errors in the second, jumping ahead 4–0 lead.
Kyri Washington’s two-run double in the third made it 6–0.
While Gaby Almonte struggled, Jose Almonte threw four shutout innings for the Spinners. Matt Kent followed with four innings of one-hit ball.
Run-scoring singles from Tate Matheny and Andrew Benintendi knocked Gaby Almonte out of the game.
Johnny Magliozzi took over, and by the end of the fourth it was 11–0, with 10 runs charged to Almonte.
The Spinners added a 12th run in the fifth on two singles and a double play ball.
Because of a combination of bad outings, injuries, and trying to get rest for some guys, Tom Gamboa went to Perez to pitch the seventh inning. Darwin Frias is making a spot start Saturday and a decision has yet to have been made about who will pitch Sunday.
Perez, who pitched as an amateur, walked the first hitter he faced, but recovered to get a force out and a double play grounder.
Mathieu, who pitched in high school worked around an Alfredo Reyes error and an infield single to pitch a scoreless inning, striking out two batters.
Austin Glorius struck out the side in the ninth ending a nightmare game. Mathieu and Perez were two of the strikeout victims in the ninth.
A loss by the hated Staten Island Yankees keeps Brooklyn half a game behind the Evil Empire of the New York-Penn League for first place in the McNamara Division.
The 23–21 Cyclones travel to Vermont to take on the Lake Monsters on Thursday at 7:05 pm. Don’t worry, folks. We hear the Cyclones outfielders’ arms are well rested.
