Brooklyn

 On Gaining My Revenge on Weather

Mainmonides Park, 2021

Saturday, July 24, 2021
Wilmington Blue Rocks (Washington Nationals) vs. Brooklyn Cyclones (New York Metropolitans)
Mainmonides Park
High-A League
Coney Island, NY
6:00 PM 

Outside the Game:
The Cylcones were at home and had a Jacob deGrom bobblehead giveaway, so it seemed the perfect Saturday to cash in my rain check from Memorial Day. I called up to change my ticket, did some cooking and laundry, and then took a medicinal nap before heading out in the early afternoon.

To absolute chaos. They were doing some construction work at the Congress Street light rail station, replacing damaged windows on the walkway to the elevator. Which meant there was no way down to the station, which was closed anyway. They had shuttle busses running between there and the Second Street light rail station. But the shuttle bus had no air conditioning and was facing the wrong direction, which made them drive up and turn around the block instead of just driving straight down the hill. Why they just couldn't be pointed the right way, I'll never know. The ultimate irony of this shuttle of stupidity is because of the all the turn-arounds we took, we actually had to wait at the train crossing as the light rail train they had just made us miss went by.

I had a lot time seething to do some math, and it would have been slightly faster if I had just walked down to Second Street and taken the stairs down to the station from the Heights than waiting for and riding this death bus. With the next weekend light rail train not coming for a quarter hour or so, I walked the rest of the way to the PATH, happy to have freedom of movement again.

My luck turned, as I arrived just in time for a 33rd Street PATH. I switched to the subway, and had to change at 4th Street due to some weekend construction, but I eventually made my way out to Coney Island. After a quick lap to the stadium, I went to the Coney Island Museum, which was opened while I was there for the first time in forever. The exhibits hadn't changed much, but I had a good talk with one of the volunteers there, who broke off from me to explain a lot of the history to some alt couple who were having their heads blown after finding about the incubator babies pavilion.

I grabbed a soda at the bar next door and headed out to get in line for the game. It was an hour before gates, and the line was already halfway down the stadium. I waited a half-hour in the sun as the bobblehead line eventually extended all the way down the block. The line shortened up temporarily as they split it for the two entrances, and then waited until the gates opened, and everyone went in clutching their precious bobbleheads.

It was relatively early after the game, so I took a walk over the Luna Park for a while, playing at the shooting gallery and enjoying a summer evening before heading back to the subway. I switched again a West 4th and arrived right in time for PATH home. A quick Lyft had me right in time to collapse in bed.


The Stadium & Fans: 

Home to center, Mainmonides Park

Another name-change victim "Mainmonides Park" had undergone a lot of renovations since my last visit, as well as a change of venue from the late, lamented NY-PENN League to the unimaginatively named "High-A League." One entrance now served the entire park (more security protocols than Covid, though it worked for both), and the right-field bleachers had been removed for an expanded party area. Another birthday party area was snuck in behind the concessions on the first-base side, but as they had absolutely no view of the game, I wonder what the point of it was.

With the giveaway, there was a healthy crowd at the game, even in the age of Covid. In true minor-league fashion, it was both Disco Night and Italian-American Night, with leisure-suited little people and dugout disco dancing interspersed with Italian singing groups. And PeeWee was around as well. The Nathan's Hot Dog Race was in force, as well as the regular minor-league cornucopia, which was actually a pleasant callback to the simpler times of two years ago.


At the Game with Oogie: 

Scoring, scoring, scoring

With my deGrom bobblehead in hand, the night was already a win as soon as I entered.

I did my regular walking around, took my pictures, grabbed food, and hit the team store. While I was in the store, I had the first fleeting sighting of the Assistant GM, who I had interacted with online.

It took my a couple of tries to find my seat, as I ended up one section over, proudly thinking I was in the right area, before sheepishly retreating to a section over and my correct seat right behind the home dugout on the first-base side. It was a great seat either way. A young Caribbean family was in front of me, with an enthusiastic youngster who kept imitating the batting stances of all the players at the place. Behind me was a decidedly less delightful family, who were bitching about the play on the field constantly. I almost invited them to get out there and show them how it was done, but I held my tongue.

Later in the game, the Assistant GM was right in front of me during some event or other. In the last inning, a drunk wandered into our area and alternated trying to start cheers and apologizing for annoying the fans around him. He just fell on the happy side of fun drunk, so it goes. 


The Game:

First pitch, Blue Rocks vs. Cyclones

This wasn't necessarily the clash of the titans, as the two teams were fighting for the last spot in the eastern division of the High-A East division. But the Cyclones were on a bit of a run, and it wanted to keep the good news running.

It started slow, with both teams going in order in the first, with Brooklyn even getting struck out in order. Wilmington started the second with a single joined by a hit by pitch, but both got left on the bases. The Cyclones started their half of the second the same way, with a leadoff walk, followed by a single. The runner on third scored on a ground-out, then a homer cleared the bases and staked the Cyclons to a 3-0 lead early. The Blue Rocks got some back in the third, with a single, stolen base, walk, and then a bizarre error by the pitcher (to be detailed below), cutting the lead to 3-1. Brooklyn immediately earned some of it back in the bottom of the third, with two singles and a walk to load the bases, and a double to clear them, raising the lead to 6-1.

Wilmington stranded a walk in the top of the fourth, while the Cyclones finally went in order. Both sides went in order in the fifth (with Brooklyn again getting struck out in order), and the Blue Rocks also went in order in the sixth. Brooklyn had a leadoff walk erased on a double play in their half of the frame.

The Blue Rocks went in order again in the seventh, while a walk and a single were squandered by Brooklyn in their half of the inning. Wilmington again went in order in the eighth, but the Cyclones padded their lead with a leadoff hit-by-pitch followed by a walk were picked up by a one-out triple, making it 8-1 at the end of eight. The Blue Rocks would not go quietly into the sea-air night after the first two batters struck out in the ninth. The next batter was hit, and then a homer made it 8-3. A single followed, but he was stranded by one last strikeout, leaving the final 8-3 in favor of the home team.


The Scorecard:

Blue Rocks vs. Cyclones, 7/24/21. Cyclones win, 8-3

The Brooklyn Cyclones have thankfully changed their scorecard to a separate $1 cardstock fold-up instead of their previous newsprint programs. It makes for much less fraught scoring. The spacious card has a white background with plenty of space for notes, with each individual cell having a faint diamond outline. The are twelve player lines with spaces for replacements, twelve inning columns, and seven pitcher lines and batting an fielder totals next to the pitching line. The player lines end with at bats, runs, hits, and and RBI, while the inning columns end with tabulations for runs and hits. The pitching lines count up innings pitched, hits, runs, earned runs, walks, and strike outs.

This game had a lot of interesting bits. It being a minor league game, there was a "Villain of the Game" (who was made up like Thanos on the scoreboard--I guess "K Man" is passé these days). The top of the third had a play so complex it took a paragraph of text to explain. After a leadoff single stole second, it was a man on second with one out. The batter walked, but there was a wild pitch on ball four, advancing the lead runner to third and the trailing runner advanced to second. The runner on third decided to try for home, but was dead to rights on a 2-5-1 putout/rundown, but the pitcher dropped the ball on the end of the relay, allowing the runner to score on an E1. Got that?

The top of the fourth had another E1 on an errant pickoff throw. In the bottom of the eighth, there was an at-bat delayed by the catcher getting hit by a pitch and getting looked at by the trainer. And in the top of the ninth, there was a controversial hit-by-pitch on a ball that bounced before it reached the plate (wrong call, Blue), and the next batter homered, but the runs were ultimately meaningless. 

This game featured 23 strikeouts, 12 for Wilmington pitchers and 11 for Brooklyn hurlers. For those scoring at home, that is nearly a full perfect game worth of strikeouts in an 8-3 game. Go figure.


The Accommodations:
My Delta-variant-free apartment in Jersey City

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

Stand-Alone Trip, 2021

Brooklyn

On an American July 4th-ish

MCU Park, 2017

Monday, July 3, 2017
Connecticut Tigers (Detroit Tigers) vs.
Brooklyn Cyclones (New York Metropolitans)
MCU Park
NY-Penn League (A-)
Brooklyn, NY
7:00 PM


Outside the Game:
With my previous plans for the holiday weekend not coming to pass due to tornadoes in upstate New York providing very subtle hints, I decided to head out to Coney Island to see a game. I hadn't been out there in so many years longer than I had thought, as it turned out, and I also was unable to make much plans further from home because of the work situation I was in. I hadn’t been out to Coney Island for the same duration, although I tend to make trips to the beach in the winter, but hadn't in the last few years.

I bought a ticket online the night before, but I was able to sleep in and did not get out the door until 11 AM. As the game wasn't until the evening, it wasn't that big of a deal, but I did want to spend some time at Coney as well. I debated grabbing an Uber all the way there, but a look at the traffic discouraged that idea, so I grabbed some jerky I bought at the farmer's market the day before and set out to mass transit. The light rail to PATH to the F outbound went surprisingly quickly. This was offset by a delay at the very end of the line due to some train problems. After waiting 10 minutes to get into the aquarium stop, I decided to get off there instead of taking it to the end, in case of further delays.

Iconic

I wandered out into the blazing Monday afternoon sun. I walked over to the Cyclone to get beat up for entertainment's sake, and then stopped at Nathan's to dump some food in my agitated stomach. It is important to get the order on those two things correct. They were setting up everything for the hot dog contest the next day, so a lot of the tables were blocked off. I walked out to the stadium on the boardwalk, passing the newly re-opened Thunderbolt. So soon after lunch, I decided against trying it out. I picked up my ticket at the will call window and then headed back to the aquarium.

Nathon's famous

I really, really, really don't want to be that guy, but I saw them finishing construction on an Applebee’s and Cinnabon on Surf. They tore down the buildings that were there, and they were opening chain store America into Coney Island, a place that corporate America couldn't find on a map for thirty or so years. The old buildings that were torn down for those stores were the abandoned buildings where the homeless used to go to have sex in peace. And I know it seems odd to say it, given a choice between the area having an Applebee’s or a homeless bang shack, I really wish the bang shack would come back. The gentrification cannot be stopped.

Glub

The Brooklyn Aquarium was still undergoing renovations after Hurricane Sandy. There were a limited amount of exhibits open, but since I'm a member, I didn't have to wait or pay to get in. The aquarium was absolutely packed with people huddled around the exhibits that were open, and I spent my time to see what was there and then beat a hasty retreat out to the street. My next stop was the Freak Show, which had partnered up with the Coney Island Museum. Unfortunately, the museum was closed that Monday, which was disappointing. I, however, accepted that fact, as opposed to a yuppie family that came in after me that badgered the people to let them in because they had come really far to see the museum.

Well, if you had come that far, you probably should have checked if it was open on Mondays. Even the freak show had gone upscale. They had their own trust-fund grungy bar now and a gift shop. I bought a trinket or two and grabbed a soda before heading back out into the world.

Over the top

Even the Wonder Wheel park had gotten its act together, with electronic passes to go on the rides, and the amusement park had expanded out into two areas. The Wonder Wheel itself was still there and delightfully unimproved. I also stalked around to find some of the light rifle games that had been there since before I was born and shot up some dark-ride leftovers with beams of justice. The funky old dark ride was still there as well, so even in this wave of gentrification, it is nice to some old school remains.

There was a big art wall exhibit in one of the parking lots where I walked around for a bit before stopping off at a White Castle cart for a slider or two to tide me over until the game. I walked out to the boardwalk again and out to the end of the fishing pier to take some photos. Eventually, it was time for the gates to open, so I walked back out to the park to get in as they did.

Night wind

After the game, I left as the fireworks were still going off. It was an easy enough ride from the F back to Hoboken on the PATH, where I decided to grab a cab back to the apartment in Jersey City, because I had walked quite enough for this particular day.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, MCU Park

The last time I was at MCU Park, it was “Keyspan Park.” I actually had to look up if one didn't become the other, but apparently Keyspan Energy got bought by the British and no longer exists, so MCU bank stepped in to buy the naming rights.

So, it had been a fair bit of time since I came to the park, which is sad, because it is one of the best minor league parks around.

There were a number of changes to the place since I'd last been there. Thanks to Hurricane Sandy, they changed the field to turf, which was awful. Budweiser grabbed the naming right to a rooftop party deck on the top of the luxury suites by home plate. There were new retired numbers along the luxury boxes, and there was a new area in the outfield called "The Backyard," a catered party area that had a view through the new mesh outfield walls. I also got to go into the admin and access area for the suites for the first time, which hosts a large mural of the team as well as the Alumni Wall and Sandlot Baseball Hall of Fame. Also, as with nearly every minor league club these days, they snuck in a MIA seat behind home plate. Otherwise, the park pretty much structurally remains the same, with a little musical chairs on concessions and some cosmetic changes to the team store.

Sandy

The mascot situation remains the same, with Sandy and PeeWee hanging around the park for most of the festivities. Local kids’ entertainer King Henry is still on hand to MC the events, and the stupid cheerleaders are still around, for some god-awful reason. The between-inning activities remain mostly the same, with contests and races of questionable skill. There was a fireworks display after the game, but as per usual, I didn't stick around for it.

There was, as always, a healthy crowd, even with the holiday weekend. Brooklyn baseball fans flew the flag, even if the game didn't reflect their wishes.


At the Game with Oogie:

Rice balls

There's always room for one. I had managed to score a single seat right next to the Cyclones dugout in the middle of the season ticket-holders' seats, with a look straight down into the dugout. So, I had that going for me.

In walking around to see what had changed, I found there was a new rice ball concession open, where you can mix and mix six-packs of egg-holders of rice balls. It was obviously that I got for dinner, such as it was. I did my walking around and my stop at the shop, and I was AIS at about a half-hour before game time.

As I was in the season-ticket area, most of the people around me were regulars who knew each other. There was a clutch of college-aged kids in the area in front of me. One of them was also keeping score, and we helped each other out every now and again on some of the trickier plays. Right next to me in my row were two badda-bings. We talked a little bit, but they kept on doing their Guido thing next to me for most of the game.


The Game:

First pitch, Tigers vs. Cyclones

This early-season (at least for the short-season NY-PENN League) matchup between the Tigers and the Cyclones was a laugher all the way, with the home team's hopes dying with their only lead in the first.

The Tigers began the top of the first with just a single to show for it, but back-to-back walks to start the bottom half of the inning and a short single loaded the bases. The Cyclones would show their relation to the Metropolitans as they only managed to bring in one run in on a sacrifice fly that included a double-play, nevertheless staking themselves to a 1-0 lead. It lasted a half inning. Connecticut started the second with a single and double to make it second and third with no outs. A run scored on a ground out, and a sacrifice fly brought in another, reversing the lead to 2-1 for the visitors. Brooklyn had back-to-back singles in the bottom the inning stranded on the base paths. The Tigers leapt going in the third with a one-out rally of two walks, three singles, and a sacrifice fly to get three more runs across, expanding the lead to 5-1. Brooklyn answered in the bottom of the third with a two-out rally of their own, stringing together a single and four straight walks to force in a run and cut the deficit to 5-2.

Connecticut kept scoring in the fourth with a leadoff walk, stolen base, and single to re-extend the lead to four runs at 6-2. The Cyclones went in order in the bottom of the frame. The Tigers only had a stranded baserunner from an error in the fifth, while Brooklyn countered with its sole walk. The sixth went similarly quickly, with both teams putting up a lone single.

The seventh was more productive for Connecticut, as back-to-back leadoff singles and a double brought in two more runs to make it 8-2, while the Cyclones only had a hit batsman and walk in their half. The Tigers went in order for the first time of the night in the eighth, while Brooklyn made its last real run with a leadoff home run to right, but they stranded one-out doubles and singles to just close it to 8-3. Connecticut put up some more unneeded insurance in the ninth with a leadoff walk, two singles, and a ground-out bringing in two more runs. The Cyclones had two singles and a walk to load the bases with two outs, but a pop out to third ended the game, with the Tigers winning easily, 10-3.


The Scorecard:

Tigers vs. Cyclones, 07/03/17. Tigers win, 10-3.

The scorecard was part of the free mini-tabloid game program. Although the form factor had changed from a full tabloid since the last time I visited, the same flimsy newspaper was used in the program, remaining very fragile and prone to tears. The scorecard itself was smaller than the space on the two-page spread, which made it very cramped to use and hard to record the game legibly.

There was only one play worthy of scoring note. In the bottom of the first, there was an 8-8-5 double play that was also a sacrifice fly. With the bases loaded, and no outs, the batter flew out to center and successfully brought in the run from third, but he also threw out the runner advancing from second to third, completing the 8-8-5 DP.


The Accommodations:
Jersey City, Sweet, Jersey City

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2017 Stand-Alone Trip

Staten Island

On a Strange Glimpse into the Future

Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Brooklyn Cyclones (New York Metropolitans) vs.
Staten Island Yankees (New York Yankees)
Richmond Country Bank Ballpark at St. George
NY-PENN League (Short-Season A)
Staten Island, NY
7:00 PM


Outside the Game:
After my trip up North (west) the week before, and my trip up North (East) the next week, I needed to stay relatively close to home to keep my sanity on this weekend. I was way behind on all my writing, and next week would just give me more.

It was fortuitous, then, that the Staten Island Yankees were home this weekend. I had seen them on my first "official" trip way back when, but I hadn't gotten any good photos, so I wanted to go back and correct that, especially because I could then order my Flickr book of the first 100 stadiums I visited.

As PATH has seen fit to prohibit both ferry and PATH train service to lower Manhattan on the weekends (the former as a matter of course and the later due to "maintenance"), I had to be a little creative in getting to the Staten Island ferry. I took the PATH to Christopher Street and then walked over to the red line, which could take me to South Ferry. As this would also take me past work, it would be an unpleasant reminder of Monday. Speaking of unpleasant reminders, there were also police barricades up for, I recalled, the Pride Parade. This led to some hectic thinking about whether the parade was Saturday or Sunday, as I can't imagine the Hell of trying to get back to the PATH in the aftermath of the parade.

I wonder where the ferry is.

I made it to the ferry without incident, and got on the cattle call that was the boarding process. There was a nice breeze blowing, I spent a relaxing ferry ride up on the open deck. We were eventually disgorged on Staten Island, and I took the brief walk to the park.

After my photographic ramblings, and sitting in the sun for an unconscionable amount of time waiting for the Will Call office to open, I eventually got in line and entered the stadium as it opened at 6 PM.

The way out was fraught with more worry. I kept an eye on the clock, slowly ticking over 10:30 PM, and the last ferry for a half hour. The game mercifully completed itself at 10:56, and I left on a sprint for the ferry. Breathlessly arriving, I was greeted by an announcement that due to "police activity," the ferry was going to be delayed ten minutes.

Passing some lady on the way home

Defeated by fate, I walked back outside to catch the post-game fireworks over the park, then trudged back into line as the ferry boat finally showed up at the dock. We boarded, and I spent another enjoyable ride above-decks trying to do some nighttime photography. The red line took me to the PATH and home, where I did a little work on the scorecard before heading to bed.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George

With the lengthy--and somewhat confusing--title of Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George, the name needs a little deconstruction, much similar to "Nippon Ham Fighters." The stadium is the "Ballpark at St. George," and it is sponsored by "Richmond County Bank" (much in the same way it is the "Nippon Ham" company sponsoring the team, the "Fighters").

That out of the way, this riverfront park is right next to the Staten Island terminal of the Staten Island ferry, which makes getting to and from the park relatively easy, as long as you're taking the ferry. It is an urban park, bordered on all sides by city streets, though the outfield wall faces out to the river and the riverwalk. During batting practice, I was walking by as a well-struck ball came screaming out of the stadium, hurtling over the shoulder of a confused gentleman sitting on a bench on the river walk, bouncing once, and then bounding to the depths of the river. "You should have dove for it," I offered.

Unlike most short-season A parks, it has entrances at all corners, with the main entrance and ticket booth by home plate; an entrance by the Will-Call box offices at third base; an entrance in the left field corner; and another entrance and ticket office in right field, closest to the ferry terminal. There is an extended plaza by the left field entrance by the river, which has a small playground, and ends in the Staten Island 9/11 Memorial, which brackets the site in lower Manhattan now being occupied by the Freedom Tower. I am not going to talk about how ridiculous a name that is now, however. This is me not doing it.

The park has a slightly unique layout in the walkways in the park are dual-leveled. The entrances in the outfield start on a lower level, and then, around first and third bases, there are stairways up to an upper promenade that extends around behind home plate. Above that upper walkway extends a second level that houses the press boxes, as well as an extensive (for A ball) section of club boxes. The seating bowl extends down from the upper walkway and is not spilt up by any intermediate walkways, just two landings for handicapped seating at around first and third bases.

The right field walkway ends at that entrance, and along the lower walkway is the Professional Baseball Scouts Wall of Fame. Various other concessions run along the lower and upper walkway (including the team store in the area behind home plate). A sizable kids area is at the left-field entrance. Just after the kids area is the extensive tented patio for the All-You-Can Eat seats near first base. The main scoreboard sits in left, and the wall in right is a narrow auxiliary scoreboard. Retired numbers perch on the club level near home plate, and the championship banners sit on the same level near first base. The home dugout is on the third base side, no doubt because it is the first section to get the shade in the setting sun.

He's a holey cow, get it?

On-field antics are run by the "Pinstripe Patrol" (which, in a great heresy to all things baseball, include a team of "dancers," who are barely concealed cheerleaders) and mascots Scooter, the Holy Cow, and monkey Red (allusions to late Yankees' announcers Phil Rizzuto and Red Barber). Most of the entertainment is minor-league standard races, contests, and dancing. As it is Staten Island, and the ferry is literally next door, the scoreboard race is of ferries, and they did have one unique contest, a "Princess Race," for fathers and their daughters. The dads are dressed like kings, and the daughters princesses. They have to race to put on glass slippers, grab a tiara, and then kiss a frog, before running back to the king. It was a nice catering to girls that you don't often see in parks, if a smidgen stereotypical.

The crowd was packed about 50/50 with SI Yankees and Cyclones fans. Unlike other low-A ballparks, while there were families here, the majority of the crowd was hard-core baseball people.


At the Game with Oogie:

Dueling scoring

As this was a Brooklyn/Staten Island game, I had gotten my tickets the day before online. This secured me a seat right behind the Cyclones dugout, but it did necessitate going to the Will Call window. They only decided to open that at 5:30 PM, and a line was forming, so we had to stand out in the sun for a good, long time before the window opened. To add insult to the injury, we had to watch the college-aged attendants literally re-arrange furniture for a good ten minutes or so before they attended to guests.

By the time the windows were opened, there was a snaking line going nearly to the corner. Some woman walked up just as the windows opened and asked if this was the line for all the windows, and tried to shove past me to get to the other window. I explained that, yes, the line was there for a reason. She then started acting all huffy, and I apologized to her for her inability to know what a line is, and then went to get my tickets.

Once I got in, I did my normal walking around. I ended up at one of the specialty concessions in left field that had meatball parm sandwiches, which I got, along with a drink. I had an early lunch for some reason, so I was starving at this point. I washed all of it down with a pretzel or two.

Meatball parm

As mentioned, my seats were just behind the Cyclones' dugout. In my row was an older Staten Island fan, but for the most part, I was surrounded by fellow Brooklyn supporters.

Especially the guy next to me. He carried two bags worth of stuff with him, including scorecards, and a big, handwritten daily schedule that I couldn't quite ascertain the purpose of. He did have a season ticket package with the SI Yankees, which I can assume to be for all the Cyclones games there. He had an All-You-Can Eat bracelet, as evidenced by his frequent trips up the stairs, which he would return from with various hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken sandwiches, which he would drown in ketchup and then lustily eat.

He cheered on the Cyclones in a subdued way, as he juggled his scorecard (which he kept in the empty seat next to him), his mystery schedule (which he consulted every half inning), and his never-ending supply of food (which he got up every inning or so to refill--seriously, I've never seen someone put away that much food).

The guy was harmless, but I did wonder if I was looking into a slightly more Jewish version of my future. I already had the scorecard and the bags while at the games alone. I have to figure I'm only a step or two away from the manic scribblings of my own calendar. The top of my computer desk is already covered in note cards filled with team schedules and dates. Frankly, putting them into a single schedule just makes sense.

I'm sure there is some greater truth to be had of all of this, but I stopped thinking about it after he checked his watch for the last time and tottered off in the eighth inning.


The Game:

First pitch, Cyclones vs. Yankees

This was to be a game between the first-place Cyclones and the struggling SI Yankees, but I was in attendance, so, of course, it was a blowout for the Yankees that was worse than the score suggests.

The game at least started according to plan. The Cyclones got a leadoff single that moved to second when a grounder to short got booted. A single to center brought a run in, but the trailing runners were stranded after three straight outs, leaving the score 2-0, Brooklyn. They would hold that lead for several minutes. The Yankees began their assault with a one-out single to center. This was followed immediately by a homer to left that tied the game up. With two outs, the Cyclones pitcher walked two in a row, then gave up a run-scoring single, and was pulled from the game in the first. The new pitcher gave up a double to clear the bases before a fly out to left ended the inning 5-2, Yankees.

In the second, the Cyclones only managed a baserunner on a one-out error. The Yankees kept going with a leadoff double, joined on the bases by a hit batsman. An odd attempt to steal third failed, and then a strikeout and fly to center ended the threat. The Cyclones managed an one-out double, which they stranded. A new Cyclones pitcher came in the bottom of the third and gave away the rest of the game. A double led off the inning for Staten Island, and a grounder moved him over to third. The next batter walked and stole second. A sacrifice fly to right brought in a run and moved the runner to third, and an error by the third baseman brought him in. The next batter homered, and the one after him doubled. The next two batters, perhaps coincidentally, were both hit by pitches to load up the bases again. A short single brought in a run and completed the batting around before a fly to left ended it at 9-2, Yankees.

Brooklyn managed only a two-out walk in the fourth, but Staten Island led off with a triple that was brought in a one-out sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 10-2. The Cyclones got a leadoff walk in the fifth that moved to second on a wild pitch and to third on a ground-out. A two-out single brought him in before a strikeout ended the inning, and minorly closed the gap to 10-3, Yankees. The Yankees, this time, only managed a two-out single for their half of the fifth.

The Cyclones had a leadoff walk in the sixth, followed by a walk and another single, but the Yankees' pitcher put it together to strike out three in a row and end the threat. In the bottom of the inning, Staten Island had a two-out walk followed by another walk, but they were stranded by a pop fly to third.

The Cyclones finally got something going again in the seventh. Another leadoff walk moved to second on a following single, and then third on another wild pitch. The runner on first moved to second on defensive indifference, and then everyone came home on a towering home run to center. The next batter singled, but was stranded by three straight outs, with the score a more respectable 10-5, Yankees. Staten Island came out with a leadoff single in their half, and then a two-out double brought in the run to make it 11-5, Yankees.

In the eighth, there was the first clean frame of the game, as the Cyclones went in order. The Yankees for their part only had a two-out hit batsman and a walk, which were stranded on a fly out to left. The top of the ninth was the second clean frame of the game, as Brooklyn went in order to seal up the 11-5 Yankees victory.


The Scorecard:

Cyclones vs. Yankees, 06/28/14. Yankees win, 11-5.

The previous (and only) other time I visited, the scorecard was a photocopied one-sheet that didn't even come with a program, so in that regard, you can say that things have improved with the SI Yankees. The scorecard now comes in a color tabloid newspaper program that includes some of the standard minor-league program amenities.

But that color newsprint just rubs off on everything. Wearing light colors as I do in the summer to abate the heat, a few minutes of carrying the thing around made me look like a coal miner from the 19th century. It rubbed off everywhere.

That said, the scorecard itself was both large and cramped. It got a page all to itself, but the actual scoring squares were tiny, an impression made more so by the fact that ball and strike boxes were included a'la Scoremaster, and space was taken up on both sides by an inch of space for the running line scores across the bottom that could have been better spent on more pitching lines. Some information in the scorecard was pre-printed ("Field" and "Start Time"), but overall the effort was rather poor, which no doubt explained the prevalence of personal scorecards that most of the regulars seemed to employ. They even put the home team on top, standing convention on its head, which had me scoring the scoring boxes despite my best efforts for nearly a half inning.

Scoring-wise, the interest was in errors and futility. There were seven wild pitches in the game and four hit batsmen. (Two came back-to-back in the third with nary a warning from the umpires.) Ten walks littered the proceedings, and "only" four errors (though there were at least three more questionable calls that could have been scored either way that got a little home cooking, in my opinion). There was also an embarrassment of strikeouts, with twenty-three whiffs by both teams.

With all that scoring and futility, it is not surprising that ten pitchers were also used by both sides, with the first pitching change happening in the bottom of the first inning. It was just a sloppy game, where the pitchers alternately could not get an out or couldn't be stopped from striking someone out. Of particular note was the fact that the Cyclones failed to have a clear 1-2-3 inning all game, while the Yankees only managed two.

I also logged what I think might be my first caught stealing at third (2-5), just given the rarity of the attempt.


The Accommodations:
Hoboken, after much sea travel

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2014 Stand-Alone Trip

Brooklyn

On Surprise Baseball

Keyspan Park, 2009

Saturday, July 18, 2009
Auburn Doubledays (Toronto Blue Jays) vs.
Brooklyn Cylones (New York Metropolitans)
Keyspan Park
New York-Penn League (A-)
Brooklyn, NY
6:00 PM


Outside the Game:
This was never intended to be a day at the game. The Cyclones Web site said that they were away, so I was just going down to Coney with a friend to go the Aquarium and Cyclone and whatnot.

We started off with the NY Aquarium. The only thing really new was a "4-D Experience" outside of the Aquarium proper, but for some reason, that did not appeal. We went through all the other exhibits inside, but took a pass on the sea lion show on this blazing hot day. (I always wanted to have a chat with whoever designed the amphitheater at the Aquarium. When did it seem like a good idea to anyone to construct a structure with a seating area completely made of heat-conductive metal, with no shade whatsoever, at a facility that is at a beach?)

Lazing walrus

After we got through the Aquarium, it was time to pay the pain tithe to the god Cyclone. Most surprisingly, it seemed like someone had thrown a new coat of paint on the old girl recently, and may have actually done some maintenance in the last five years. Oh sure, we were still battered around like a mouse caught by a cat, but the wounds went more superficial, and less spine-breaking.

My prediction? Pain.

On exiting, we discovered that the Village Voice was hosting some manner of music festival, so Coney was even more filled to the gills with hipsters than an average summer weekend. Navigating through the crowds of skinny jeans an oversized glasses, we visited the recently opened Coney Island Museum and then hit Nathan's for lunch. (It seems impossible that people still don't have the sense to go around to the lines at the back of Nathan's that are easily half the size of the ones up front.)

The original

After lunch, we were taking a walk to see the new Ringling Brothers attraction that had just opened on the other side of Keyspan Park when we discovered that there was, in fact, a game today, and we instead got in line for tickets to the game.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, Keyspan Park

Keyspan Park is one of the nicest minor league parks, as far as I'm concerned. Right on the beach and down the boardwalk from the main Coney Island attractions, it has the location and the ambiance. The park itself is a standard minor-league, one-tier bowl, with the press booth and luxury suites in a behind home-plate structure.

I've been there multiple times, and it really hasn't changed all that much since it opened, but it doesn't really need to.

The only disappointment was that in addition to the perennial presence of "King Ralph," the Cyclones added a "dance troupe" of party-patrol-esque women that are just barely on the happy side of the Marlin's Mermaid cheerleaders. I don't how many times this can be stated, but apparently at least once more is required: there are no cheerleaders in baseball.

King Ralph

After the main contest was a post-game fireworks show. With the ocean breeze coming in and the summer sun already beyond the horizon, it was Coney Island at its best.


At the Game with Oogie:

Pee-Wee

We got seats on the third base side, just outside of the shade, which made it a little uncomfortable until the sun eventually set.


The Game:

First pitch, Doubledays vs. Cyclones

The Doubledays scored first in the top of the fourth, and then it was nearly all Cyclones, who showed some power, sending four homers out of the yard on their way to an 11-3 romp.


The Scorecard:

Doubledays vs. Cyclones, 07/18/09. Cyclones win, 11-3.

The scorecard is part of the free giveaway program you get on the way into the stadium. The thin newsprint the Cyclones use is problematic for erasing, but otherwise is spacious enough and fine for a free program (although it is obviously based on the old Mets scorecard, without printing the actual pitching stats in the columns. Sadly, I can still write them in from memory.)

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2009 Stand-Alone

Brooklyn

GAME 9

Keyspan Park, 2006

Date: July 8, 2006, 6:00 PM
State College Spikes (St. Louis Cardinals) vs. 
Brooklyn Cyclones (NY Metropolitans)
Keyspan Park
Brooklyn, NY
NY Penn League, Class A, Short Season
Promotion: Dave & Carrie Bobble-head & Post-Game Wedding


The Stadium & Fans:
This is still one of my favorite parks in the country to see a game. Although a minor league park, the layout and location really sell the experience, especially in the summer when the heat and sun are dissipated by the ocean breeze coming over the outfield wall. Looking one way, you see the parachute drop and the ocean, and the other you see the amusement pier and the titular Cyclone. Awesome ballpark.

As with most minor league games, the crowd is largely made up of families and die-hard baseball fans, though the later are much more prevalent in the baseball history-laden borough of Brooklyn. There were, unfortunately, an annoying number of "there to be seen" trendies who couldn't tell you the teams playing while looking at the scoreboard.


Scorecard:

Spikes vs. Cyclones, 07/08/06. Spikes win, 3-1.

Although a free giveaway with sizable scoring boxes, the scorecard is still one of my biggest beefs with the Cyclone experience. It is a full-sized program for free, but they cut the costs by printing it on newsprint, which is the worst for trying to keep score. It tears and smudges easily, and the background printing of the logo makes erasing messier than it needs to be.


Miscellanea:
A couple bought up the game that day for their wedding. The giveaway was a bobble-head of them (which looked more Central American than Jewish), the between-inning events were all themed on weddings, and the wedding proper happened at the end of the game. It became a lot less heartwarming when I realized that they were both salespeople for Radio Disney and had used all their sales contacts to underwrite the whole affair. They have a website about it.


Travel & Other Non-Game Activities:
Man, as much as I like seeing games at Keyspan, it is quite a haul. It was actually quicker for me to drive down to the Trenton Thunder game than it is for me to get out to Coney Island.


The Game:
While Brooklyn has got some decent pitching and some rifle arms in the outfield (three assists this game), they have no offense to speak of. Brooklyn drops their third in a row, 3-1, and that one run was unearned. There was also a strikeout-passed ball combo that led to the batter reaching first on a strikeout.


Thus ends my trip. I did have Sunday to catch another game, but 9 games seemed to have a spiritual completeness to it. I have come to terms with my baseball geekery and found my spiritual Zen. I hope to spin this out into an even longer trip next year, heading further north or out west, as fates will take me.

Click here to see all the pictures from this trip.

2006 The East

Staten Island

GAME 7

Ballpark at St. George, 2006

Date: Friday, July 7, 2006, 6:10 PM
Brooklyn Cyclones (NY Metropolitans) vs.
Staten Island Yankees (NY Yankees)
Ballpark At St. George
Staten Island, NY
NY Penn League, Class A, Short Season
Promotion: Jackie Robinson Day (from July 5 rainout): The Jackie Robinson Story DVD


GAME 8
Date: Friday, July 7, 2006, 9:00 PM
Brooklyn Cyclones (NY Metropolitans) vs.
Staten Island Yankees (NY Yankees)
Ballpark At St. George
Staten Island, NY
NY Penn League, Class A, Short Season
Promotion: Fireworks Friday


Miscellanea:
These games were a double-header to make up for a rainout earlier in the week. Due to league rules, the games would only be scheduled for seven innings each (most likely to prevent the young players from over-exertion). They had a fifth-inning stretch during each game. Suffice to say, this was another "first."


The Stadium & Fans:
I always hear lots of people raving about the Staten Island Yankees' stadium. And while it is a nice facility of the new generation of minor league parks, with a scenic view of the Manhattan skyline, I don't think it holds a candle to Coney Island's Keyspan Park.

The crowd for the double-header was a big mix of SI Yankees and Brooklyn Cyclones fans, with the former being more numerous. The baseball fans even seemed to outnumber the families, and people were very into the games.

Scorecard:

Cyclones vs. Yankees, Game 1, 07/07/06. Yankees win, 3-1

Cyclones vs. Yankees, Game 2, 07/07/06. Yankees win, 8-2.

The scorecard was a free photocopy handout that had passable paper but far too tiny boxes.


Travel & Other Non-Game Activities:
This was the first time I had ever set foot on Staten Island.

The Staten Island Ferry was a nice little ride. On the way out, it was filled with commuters looking to get home, and on the way back, the only riders were people coming back from the game and tourists and photographers looking for good nighttime shots of the Statue of Liberty and the NYC skyline.


The Game -- Game 1:
The game zipped by at a fast clip, with the pitching outclassing the hitting by far. Staten Island lead by one for most of the game, and then they locked it up with an insurance run on a homer in the 5th. Final score: 3-1.


The Game -- Game 2:
Game 2 started at 9 PM and went just as fast. Although the Cyclones jumped out to an early lead, their pitching and defense couldn't hold it and their bullpen eventually collapsed, leading to an 8-2 loss.

Click here to see all the photos for this trip.

2006 The East