Three Great Moments at Keyspan Park

January 30, 2009   ·   Patrick Hickey, Jr.   ·   Jump to comments

Ok guys, I’ve run the ink well pretty dry over the winter, writing about players solely connected with the Cyclones and I feel that it is getting to the time that I start doing some real reporting again. So over the next few weeks, I’m going to start doing some interviews with some former Cyclones and find out what they did this offseason. Until then, I’ll share a few of my favorite moments at Keyspan.

Opening Day Massacre 2006- Not only did the Staten Island Yankees destroy the Cyclones’ pitching staff, it was my first game covering a team as a beat writer. No more one-time assignments where I could do my interview with a player and leave before the game started, this was my team to cover. I still remember the tingling feeling in my feet during the national anthem or the instant messages I made to my girlfriend and father. I also remember how Jose Reyes got lit up, giving up seven runs over just 1.3 innings pitched. It was the beginning of a metamorphosis for that team as well, as after a week or so, wholesale changes were made to get the team back in the win column.

Jordan Abruzzo’s Two Dinger Night- Not many Cyclones have hit two homers in a game, and Abruzzo hit one from each side of the plate on August 31, 2008 to keep the team’s playoff hopes alive. One of the best backstops the team has ever had, Abruzzo cemented his spot in the team’s history that night powering a 3-1 over the Hudson Valley Renegades. The team’s vocal leader that season, Abruzzo seemed to always come up big when the team needed him to.

Dylan Owen’s five innings of no-hit ball- Just by the numbers alone, many Mets fans in the future will believe that Owen was the prince of the Cyclones staff in 2007. While they would be true, the way he got there was the real story. Beginning the season as the team’s extra starter, it looked like Owen was going to be used sparingly. But after Todd Privett blew out his arm and need Tommy John surgery, Owen was thrust into the rotation and didn’t disappoint. In his first start as a pro on June 27, 2007, the Georgia native threw five-innings of no-hit ball and gave the fans in attendance a sneak preview of an assortment of pitches that would captivate them for the rest of the summer.

Photo by Conroy Walker