Staten Island Yankees take aim at NY-Penn title
It seems every time the Staten Island Yankees win the McNamara Division of the New York-Penn League, the Brooklyn Cyclones are waiting for them in the playoffs — and vice versa.
The local rivals were feeling each other out Saturday night at the Richmond County Bank Ballpark in a meaningless contest — an 11-4 Brooklyn victory, for the record — and will essentially scrimmage again Sunday afternoon in Brooklyn as they finish off the regular-season schedule.
Then, come Tuesday, it’s for all the marbles. The Yankees will have the home-field advantage throughout the playoffs by virtue of the league’s best record, and that means the semifinal opener will be at MCU Park Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The second game will be in St. George Wednesday. Game 3, if necessary, would be Thursday at the RCBB. The teams face each other 14 times during the regular season — Brooklyn leads the season series 8-5 heading into today’s finale — and Yankee manager Tom Slater knows that the team that executes will claim the three-game series.
“There will be no surprises in this series,” Slater explained. “The Cyclones are a class team and I have all the respect in the world for Rich (Donnelly, the Brooklyn manager). All the games between the teams this year have been good ones and I don’t see anything changing in the playoff games.”
Slater has already set his pitching for the series, going with Bryan Mitchell in Tuesday’s opener. The right-hander got off to a slow start this season but came on strong in the second half. Matt Tracy will start game No. 2. The southpaw was another late bloomer and averaged just over a strikeout per inning.
Game 3 will go to William Oliver, a right-hander who led the Yanks in innings pitched, strikeouts, and was tied for wins with five.
“Our bullpen has been solid from opening day, but the starters progressed nicely throughout the year,” Slater explained. “Plus, the more experience they got, the more confidence they gained. I have faith in all three of them.
“Another plus is having Nick (McCoy) behind the plate. He has a terrific relationship with the pitching staff and he knows each guy’s strengths.”
The Yankee lineup has been solid all season with a nice mixture of power and speed, and Slater does not expect to do much tinkering with a successful formula.
“This group has worked hard all year and they deserve to be in this position,” the manager added. “It’s simply a terrific collection of young men, and I can say that without a baseball, glove or bat even being involved.”
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