Mark Kohoon is 5-1 in six starts this season. Opponents are hitting just .233 off him. In 40 innings pitched, he also surrendered just seven walks.

James Fuller has a 3-3 record, but has a sparkling 1.75 ERA in six starts. He’s also pitched six innings in five of his appearances and has 40 Ks.

Brandon Moore has administered just three walks in 41 innings pitched. Hitters are batting just .190 against him.

Michael Powers has six saves in 10 appearances and has given up just nine hits in 12.1 innings.

Hitters:

Catcher Juan Centeno only has two hits in his last 33 ABs.

First baseman Sam Honeck has 14 hits in his last 40 ABs. He’s also hitting .349 in July.

Luis Rivera currently leads the team with 19 RBI, five stolen bases and a .417 on-base percentage.

Despite hitting .120 on the road this season, John Servidio has six homers, 14 RBI and a .282 BA at Keyspan Park this season.

However, in the early part of the 2007 season, the 6’1 righty was an unknown 21st round pick trying to get noticed.

In this exclusive interview, a timid Gee talks about how he was making the adjustment from college ball to the pros.

You can download the file @

http://media.switchpod.com//users/dembrooklynbums/DemBrooklynBumsBlastFromthePastDillonGee72007.mp3

Photo by Jim Dolan

Brad Holt- 12-6, 2.95 ERA, while averaging a strikeout an inning in St. Lucie; expect a mid to late season call up to the B-Mets as well. It’s a big assumption to make, but I do think that Holt will continue the success that he had in Brooklyn, but won’t be as dominant. His ERA last season was 1.87 and this season, I feel it’ll go up another full point. Nevertheless, the way his breaking pitches progressed last season, he’s still going to be successful and yes, he will still be a starter [well, in my crazy mind anyway]. That may change when he gets comfortable in Double-A though.

Dillon Gee- 15-9 3.50 ERA combined with B-Mets and Buffalo, while eventually making his MLB debut. Watching this guy pitch in Brooklyn in 2007 was a blast as he has some phenomenal control and pitched great in tight spots. That success has carried over into higher levels as well as he was rock solid with both St. Lucie and Binghamton last season. Unlike Owen, who relies on the strikeout more to get out of jams, Gee induces a ton of ground balls in addition to getting a decent amount of K’s. Because of that type of versatility, I expect a ton of success from him in the future. Remember, you heard it here first.

Jenry Mejia- 8-13, 4.75 ERA in Savannah, with some time in St. Lucie. Let me just say for the record that I love this kid’s off-speed pitches. His fastball also has a ton of pop at 96 MPH. He’s got a ton of talent, but he’s still extremely green. Watching him walk a half dozen hitters in a row one game in Brooklyn last season proved that more than anything. Nevertheless, he’s got so much natural talent that you can never count him out. In spite of that, I see him going through some growing pains this season as he learns to become more of a complete pitcher both on the mound and off. Reminding me a lot of a young Jose Lima or Carlos Zambrano, Mejia lets his emotions get to him at times and it will be something that he’ll have to learn to control before he can truly be successful.

Photo by Daniel Wos.

Last week, I shared my thoughts on a trio of pitchers I thought would provide some interesting stories for the new season.

Here are my best bets as far as infielders go.

Reese Havens- Spending all of that time injured in Brooklyn last season didn’t diminish his star power one bit if you ask me. In the limited time he was there, he showed he can be a more than a solid gap to gap hitter and can even thrive in the leadoff spot if given a chance. The only question is, what position will he play? For that reason alone, I think this upcoming season will be an interesting one for him.

Wilmer Flores- There’s no way I could have had this list and not put him on it. Simply put, the kid is built like a god and is only 17. He’s got quick hands and even though he’s shown a lack of composure against off-speed pitches, he in no way, shape or form is a Pedro Cerrano [the dude from “Major League” that needed the power of VooDoo to hit a curveball] clone. Unless he gets injured, I expect a more than solid season from the kid, hopefully in Brooklyn, where I can keep my eyes on him.

Emmanuel Garcia- This guy really showed me something when he was here a few summers ago. However since then, he’s been average at best. Nonetheless, I really think he’s due for a good season in 09. Good pitch recognition skills and excellent speed don’t run on trees and luckily, Garcia has both.

On another note, I just want to say that I would have really liked to put two other players on this list, but I feel that for their own reasons, may be too tough to judge. One is Ike Davis, who in spite of playing excellent defensively all season in Brooklyn last season, just never put it together with his bat. Before I saw him play, I heard a few people comparing him to someone like Derek Lee, but for my money, I see him in more of a Sean Casey, Lyle Overbay or Sid Bream [old reference, I apologize to some of my younger readers] role in the bigs. Rather than being a 30 homer and 100 RBI guy, I see him as a 15-80, .275 type of player that may eventually be shifted to the outfield if the team can find a slugging first baseman once he gets to the bigs. Nothing wrong with that if you ask me, it’s just not what the Mets ordered when they saw him on the draft menu last season.

The other player is Zach Lutz, who I feel that when healthy, is a top 10 prospect in this system. The only problem is getting him healthy and if he’ll ever really have that chance to show how talented he really is. If he does, you heard it here first: lock up your daughters and watch out; this kid has the goods.

Photo by Patrick Hickey Jr.

Eric Brown- Simply put, the guy has exhibited phenomenal control over the course of his professional career, walking only 94 hitters in 433.1 innings. Add in an excellent sinker and a solid fastball and it’s easy to see why Brown didn’t play in Savannah and right to St. Lucie in 2007. Nevertheless, his secondary pitches, his slider and seldom used changeup, were nothing special for the first few years of his career, even in his best season as a pro, in Brooklyn 2006. Nevertheless, a year or two can change things a lot and despite the fact that he went just 6-9 with a 5.05 ERA last season, a little more work on his secondary pitches could easily make him a Steve Trachsel-esque pitcher at the big league level.

Jenry Mejia- His name may have more spellings than Tommy Lee has ex-flings, but the teenager can flat out pitch. After looking like he was getting sent to Kingsport just a few weeks before the All-Star break, Mejia transformed himself into a more than solid professional pitcher. Fueled by a deceptive 12-6 curve and a 94-96 mph fastball, Mejia has the stuff to be dominant, he just has to maintain his composure. A few times during the season, Mejia lost control on the mound [both physically and emotionally] and every time, it was obvious he wasn’t going to turn things around. However, when he was on, he was one of the most dominant starters in the league. If he can keep his walk totals down, this guy will be a tour-de-force in Double A sometime next season.

Eddie Kunz- Another guy that will depend on having more than solid control if he wants to be a force. However, unlike Mejia who has a very good fastball and an excellent off-speed pitch, I see Kunz being much more versatile, working off his fastball and heavy as a lead zeppelin sinker in combination with his changeup and a slider that still needs some work. If he can throw all four of this pitches for strikes and establish his sinker as an effective out pitch, he may be hanging out in the Citi-Field bullpen this season.

Photo by Conroy Walker.

With many of the local newspapers covering the team are all done with their Cyclones coverage this season, the information he gave was for journalists’ ears only. However, since the beginning, I decided that at DemBrooklynBums.com, fans could come for year-round information on the team. With that being said, the next two posts will be dedicated to giving Mr. Berrios an opportunity to discuss his staff.

First up, the starters:

Brad Holt: “Holt has a power arm. He hit 100 miles per hour on the radar gun in Aberdeen and it was the first time I saw it live. That was impressive. We had a report on him that he threw 147 fastballs out of 152 pitches in a start in college. In the beginning, he told me, ‘I don’t even know what I throw.’ I told him, just throw whatever you have and we’ll take it from there. It turns out he has a power curve, 79-81 miles per hour with a big break. He also started to incorporate his change up. He’s very athletic and he’s constantly learning. He’s got a world of talent and with that type of power, especially considering how far he’s come with his secondary pitches in such a short amount of time, the sky is the limit. I think in two or three years, he’ll be a guy on the front end of the Mets rotation.”

Scott Shaw and Chris Schwinden: “These guys are both tacticians on the mound and they rely on spotting the ball. Their game is being able to locate their pitches and change speeds. They did an impressive job of that this season. I think Shaw was one of our most underrated pitchers and if you take two or three bad innings away from him, he was the best pitcher in the league this season.”

Pedro P. Martinez: “He was in the top 10 in the New York-Penn league up to his last few starts. But because of his youth, he was unable to sustain it. He still had a heck of a year though.”

Jenrry Mejia: “To be here at 18 and playing so well at this level is really impressive. He sits on 94 miles per hour and can get up to 97. He doesn’t quite have the extension of a guy like Holt has, but considering how young he is, I think he has a lot of potential.”

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

DemBrooklynBums.com: What kind of affect has pitching coach Hector Berrios had on your game?

Matias Carrillo: He’s helped me a lot mentally this season. Many times I came into games this season with us being ahead by one-run and it’s stressful out there. You can’t make mistakes. Every once in a while, I’d have to come in and pitch three or four innings and as the season went on, I got really relaxed out there. I think he had a lot to do with that.

DBB: Considering that you haven’t pitched at Keyspan much this season, many fans may still be unfamiliar with your game. Can you tell us what pitches you throw?

Carrillo: Two-seam Fastball, curve ball, sinker and changeup. I use either my changeup or the sinker as my out pitch. My fastball is only 86-89, but I get good movement.

DBB: Because of your role in the bullpen this season and the fact that you rely more on command than most of the other pitchers on the staff, did you feel you were under a lot of pressure to succeed this season?

Carrillo: I wouldn’t say it was pressure, I just knew I had a job to do. Like I said before, you come into the game in a really tough situation and all you can do is get the outs. It felt good when I did.

DBB: Have you had a good time with the guys this season?

Carrillo: I had a lot of fun with these guys this season, the chemistry was great and everyone got along well.

DBB: What was your favorite moment of this season?

Carrillo: There was this one time in Aberdeen when I came in with one out and the bases loaded. I struck out the only two hitters I faced. It was a great feeling.

DBB: Do you think the coaching staff grew to value what you did out of the pen as the season wore on?

Carrillo: I think so. I think they put me in a good situation to grow and go to higher levels in the organization. I know I have things to work on, like keeping the ball down more and away from hitters, but they gave me an opportunity to pitch a lot and I think I got better. I feel like a different pitcher than I was before.

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

That reason however is an easy one- pitching coach Hector Berrios.

Entering his tenth season as a pitching coach and his fifth with the Cyclones, Berrios has consistently taken young pitchers to the top in Brooklyn. This season is no different.

Coming into the season, everyone in the organization knew that supplemental pick Brad Holt was going to be the bee’s knees, but no one could have possibly pondered how successful relative unknowns Jimmy Johnson, Chris Schwinden, Erik Turgeon and Roy Merritt were going to be. All picked in the 22nd round or later in the 2007 and 2008 drafts, many believed these youngsters were simply needed to fill out the roster.

Instead, they’ve been stalwarts on the mound and have played an integral part in the team’s success, thanks in part to the hard work of Berrios behind the scenes.

“It’s been a real pleasant experience with these guys this season,” he said. “Once these guys got their feet wet this season, they all really took off. You’re seeing it right now.”

In his five years in Brooklyn, Berrios has kept the Cyclones in the top three in team ERA every season and has consistently made heroes out of the most unlikely. Take the 2008 22nd round pick Schwinden for instance, who came into the season coming out of the bullpen sparingly, to only find himself one of the team’s dominant starters by the All-Star break.

For players like Schwinden, Berrios is an angel that makes their first year in professional baseball a dream come true, rather than a nightmare.

“Hector is an amazing pitching coach,” said Schwinden, who made the NY-Penn League All-Star team this season under Berrios’ tutelage. “He’s always there for us and you know he’d take our side in a fight if he had to. He’s gives us so much information and he always leaves it up to us to take it. He prepares you for so many things on the mound and by doing that, he makes you a better pitcher than you were before.”

A ninth round pick of the San Francisco Giants in 1983, who played parts of two seasons at the Triple-A level, Berrios knows how tough life in the minors can be.

That alone has played a huge part in his success as a pitching coach.

“Your the first guy that they learn from and that experience lasts a lifetime,” said Berrios. “I don’t like to do this just so they get to the big leagues. I always try and make sure that they know I care about them and I’m very passionate about their success. That creates a real bond and I don’t think any of them ever forget Brooklyn and what they learned here.”

Becoming a father figure to the players he coaches, Berrios has put together quite a resume for himself over the past half decade in Brooklyn, as Florida Marlins reliever Matt Lindstrom, Royals starer Brian Bannister and current Mets relievers Eddie Kunz and Joe Smith have all passed through his bullpen in Coney Island.

That, Berrios said, is something he’ll never forget.

“It’s been an awesome ride and it’s great that I get calls back from guys that feel that comfort and they know they can talk to me when things are going bad or even when they are going good.”

The way the team has pitched this season, it’s fair to say that he’ll be getting plenty of phone calls this winter.

“I don’t even want to think about where I’d be without him this year,” said Turgeon. “I was so lucky that I got the chance to come here and work with him.”

Link-

Box Score to last night’s 5-4 Cyclones Win.

Photos by Patrick Hickey Jr. and Ron Hatcher.

DemBrooklynBums.com: You were hitting very well down in Kingsport, can you tell us a little about your game?

Dock Doyle: I started off a little slow this summer, I guess it was the transition from college ball and the metal bats to the pros and wood. It just took some time. Now I’m here in Brooklyn and ready to experience the game with the Brooklyn Cyclones.

DBB: To give the fans at home a better idea of what kind of player you are, is there a player at the major league level that you try and emulate?

Doyle: I like watching guys like Jorge Posada and Jason Varitek catch. Mets fans may not like that though.

DBB: What do you take more pride in, calling a game, or hitting?

Doyle: I’m a hitter, I love to hit. I enjoy being behind the plate and helping pitchers and I really like to lead as much as I can when I’m out there, but hitting is definitely my favorite part of the game.

DBB: Has the organization told you what to expect as far as playing time is concerned? Do you have any expectations?

Doyle: I don’t know, I haven’t heard anything from anyone, so I’m just going to enjoy the rest of my summer and see where it takes me.

DBB: Josh Satin and John Servidio spent some time in Kingsport earlier in the season, did you hang out with them at all? Do you know any of the other guys?

Doyle: They were there for a few nights and we went out to dinner a few times. They were a lot of fun to be around. Erik Turgeon was my roommate down there to and I know Seth Williams from when he was there. I haven’t met most of the other guys though.

Link-

Box Score to last night’s 5-4 Cyclones Win.

Photos by Patrick Hickey Jr. and Jim Dolan

Leaving six runners on in the game’s first two innings and committing two errors in the top of the ninth, the Clones ruined another fantastic pitching performance from their staff, resulting in a 2-1 loss.

“This is a tough one to swallow,” said Cyclones skipper Edgar Alfonzo. “Our pitchers did a great job and we didn’t help them. We had plenty of chances.”

After amassing only two hits on Friday against Lowell starter Kyle Weiland, Brooklyn got three in the first inning off Bryan Price, including a bases-loaded RBI single from Juan Legares that scored Seth Williams and gave the Cyclones a 1-0 lead.

Price’s struggles continued into the second and after two more hits and a fall on the mound after a single by Caesar Cordido, he was replaced in favor of Dennis Neuman. The Spinners reliever was then fortunate to get himself out of a bases-loaded jam after a Jose Jimenez fly out in right field and a outfield assist from Luis Sumoza that nailed Cordido at the plate, keeping the score 1-0.

Continuing the recent stretch of stellar starting pitching for Brooklyn was 18-year-old Jenrry Mejia [2-1, 3.63 ERA], who kept the Boston Single-A affiliate hitless through the game’s first four innings. Limiting Lowell to just 1 hit in six innings of work, Mejia bounced back from a few bad starts and put himself in position to win his first game since Jul. 25.

“I felt great out there,” said Mejia, through a translator. “My fastball was really working.”

Jimmy Johnson replaced Mejia in the seventh and continued the one-hit bid by getting Lowell in order. Stephen Clyne pitched the eighth and gave up a hit, but kept the score at 1-0. Continuing to pitch in the final frame, Clyne walked a batter and surrendered another hit, but a pair of errors, one by Lagares and the other by JR Voyles allowed two runs to score and gave Lowell their first lead of the night at 2-1.

Robert Romero made his season debut for Lowell in the ninth and got the Cyclones in order, securing the 2-1 Cyclone loss.

Losing the final game of the series with the Spinners, Brooklyn now has three games on the road with the Tri-City Valley Cats before coming back home for a three-game series with Oneonta on Wednesday.

Still confident of their playoff chances with only 13 games remaining, Brooklyn knows the bats have to start producing more.

“You can’t expect your pitchers to bail you out when you only score one run,” said Williams. “There’s nothing else they could have done. We know what we have to do.”

Notes-

Third baseman/Left fielder Eric Campbell was replaced by Sean Ratliff in the third. After the game, Alfonzo said it was a “manager’s decision” and refused to comment further on it.

Clones Outfielder John Servidio, who was leading the team in RBI for a large portion of the season, will be out for the rest of the year, according to a source inside the team. Injuring his hand a few weeks ago, it is reported that Servidio will undergo the same hand surgery that Mets prospect Fernando Martinez and MLB great Ken Griffey Jr. have had in recent years, this offseason.

Tim Stronach [2-5, 4.05 ERA] was sent to St. Lucie before the game.

Photos by Ron Hatcher and Jim Dolan.

That, however, is exactly what the Brooklyn Cyclones and Lowell treated the 7,341 fans in attendance at Keyspan Park to on Friday, but unlike the night before, it was the Spinners who were on the winning end, edging out the Baby Bums 2-1 in a game that produced only six hits between both clubs.

“Tonight was tough,” said Cyclones manager Edgar Alfonzo. “You have to tip your cap to the way they pitched tonight.”

After Scott Shaw and the Brooklyn bullpen limited Lowell to only one-hit on Thursday, Mets first round pick Brad Holt was more than solid against the Boston Red Sox Single-A affiliate as well, throwing two scoreless innings to start the game. Holt [4-3, 1.75 ERA] ran into trouble in the third though, giving up a pair of hits, including an RBI double by Ronald Bermudez that put the Spinners ahead by one.

Those two hits were all Holt, who had 10 strikeouts on the night, gave up, but it wasn’t enough for to come out with a victory.

“A lot of the time, they weren’t even swinging,” said Holt. “They were just watching.”

As good as Holt was, Spinners starter Kyle Weiland was that much better, limiting the Mets Single-A affiliate to only one hit in five innings of work.

Righty reliever Charle Rosario replaced Weiland in the sixth, but Brooklyn was still unable to muster any offense in the inning. The Clones did catch a break however when Mitchell Herold came into the game in the seventh for Lowell with a runner on third with two outs. The first hitter he faced, Jordan Abruzzo, hit a routine ground ball to short, which should have ended the inning, but first baseman Ricardo Burgos couldn’t stretch out far enough to grab the throw, allowing Kirk Nieuwenhuis to score and tie the game at 1-1.

“It felt good to get that run in the eighth,” said Nieuwenhuis. “But it just didn’t happen for us tonight. Their pitchers were keeping us off balance all night.”

Clones closer Yury Santana replaced Holt in the eighth and kept the game at 1-1 until he gave up a monstrous solo home run off the top of the Keyspan Park scoreboard courtesy of Luis Sumoza in the ninth, giving the Spinners their one-run lead back at 2-1.

Seth Garrison then closed the game out for Lowell and retired all three hitters he faced, putting the finishing touches on a 2-1 Cyclones loss.

“If you don’t hit, it’s hard to win,” said Alfonzo. “Tonight was the first time in a long time that we only had two hits. We have to go out tomorrow and beat these guys.”

Notes-

Ike Davis continues to struggle this season and has hit .207 in his last ten games.

There is still no timetable on the return of Reese Havens or Matt Smith, who are suffering from groin and calf injuries respectively.

Havens is however expected to run the bases in practice tomorrow and will be evaluated again.

Video-

Brad Holt strikeout.

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Photos by Ron Hatcher. Video by Patrick Hickey Jr.