Since my last post was dedicated to what Cyclones pitching coach Hector Berrios thought of his starting pitchers this season, I thought I’d chime in with some thoughts of my own.

Brad Holt- His secondary pitches came such a long way during the season and he proved he’s much more than a fastball pitcher. His curve ball has the potential to be a devastating pitch as well and his changeup needs some work, but is progressing steadily. As far as his potential goes, I see him as someone who could round out the last two spots of a starting rotation or be an excellent setup man or reliever, kind of like an old New York favorite, Dave Righetti. His fun-loving, yet professional attitude with the media and in the clubhouse could also make him a fan-favorite in a jiffy once he gets to Brooklyn.

Final grade- A+

Pedro P. Martinez- Earlier in the season, Martinez seemed like a different pitcher. He was hitting corners and whim and even when he was missing, was missing low in the zone. As the season progressed however, it was obvious his arm was tired and he wasn’t nearly as effective. Very similar to Mejia, Martinez still has a lot to learn, but when he’s sharp, he does whatever he has to in order to get outs. With good size and a nice delivery, Martinez has the raw talent needed to advance to higher levels, but needs to develop his secondary pitchers more before he can be more than just a prospect.

Final grade- B-

Chris Schwinden- Every season in Brooklyn, there’s a player who relies on command and ends up having a monster year. In 2006, it was Eric Brown. In 2007, it was Dylan Owen and Dillon Gee. Simply put, Schwinden is a sleeper prospect with a great attitude that I see rising through the organization. Is he the next Brian Bannister, Joe Smith or promising prospect to get to the Mets in a year or so? Probably not, but he’s still going to fun to watch develop.

Final Grade- A

Scott Shaw- If there was a “bizarro world” version of Steve Trachsel, it could only be Scott Shaw. Not only does work quickly on the mound, he gives up a ton of ground balls, is extremely efficient with his pitch count and has excellent control. Not a strikeout pitcher by trade, Shaw benefited from having four pitches [fastball, curve ball, changeup and a slider] he could throw for strikes in the NY-Penn League and doesn’t figure to be one in higher levels. Big, strong and with a great work ethic, Shaw is going to be another pitcher worth following.

Final Grade- B+

Jenrry Mejia- Jekyll and Hyde. When this youngster is off, he leaves the ball up in the zone and lacks the poise needed to get professional hitters out on a consistent basis. However, when he’s on his game, he mixes in a more than solid 12-6 curve with a 95-97 MPH fastball and gets outs via the strikeout at a solid pace. Considering his age, Mejia is definitely worth keeping an eye on and with plenty of confidence and charisma on the mound already, should develop into a major league caliber pitcher if he learns to develop some sort of consistency.

Final Grade- B

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

After the Cyclones last home game this week, the team’s pitching coach Hector Berrios was gracious enough to give reporters his season in review, discussing every member of the pitching staff’s performance. I was also able to do a one on one with him a week before the season was over as well, which also helped me put this piece together.

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.

The Brooklyn Cyclones playoff run came up about 20 feet too short on Friday, after a 5-3 extra-inning nail-biting loss to the Aberdeen Ironbirds.

With Kirk Nieuwenhuis, their best hitter all season at the plate in the bottom of the tenth, an absolute bomb off the third round pick’s bat was torn from the sky courtesy of Hurricane Hanna-inspired winds, right into Aberdeen outfielder Jacob Julius’s glove in right center field.

Seconds later, the last Fireworks show of the summer at Coney Island started, symbolizing a beautiful season that in the end, just wasn’t meant to be.

A half inning afterwards, an error from closer Yury Santana opened the door for a two-run Aberdeen 11th, effectively euthanizing the Cyclones 2008 playoff hopes.

“I’m sad, but I’m happy,” said Cyclones manager Edgar Alfonzo. “Everyone got better this year and when you are 15 games over .500, it’s a successful season regardless.”

The Cyclones got on the board in the first after an Eric Campbell sacrifice fly scored Nieuwenhuis and gave them a 1-0 lead. The Mets Single-A affiliate continued to produce in the second as well after a Josh Satin single scored Seth Williams and a Jose Jimenez sacrifice fly [his second RBI since the All-Star break] scored Satin, putting Brooklyn up 3-0.

With an early three-run lead, Cyclones starter Scott Shaw was solid and despite some control problems in the third, kept Aberdeen scoreless and the lead intact. In the fourth however, Ironbirds third baseman Tyler Kolodny brought the shutout bid to end with an RBI single. A passed ball and a sacrifice fly later in the inning allowed two more runs to score, tying the game at 3-3.

Reliever Wendy Rosa replaced Shaw in the fifth and pitched 1.2 innings of shutout ball before walking a pair of hitters. Mattias Carrillo then came out of the Brooklyn bullpen and got the final out of the inning and pitched two shutout innings before leaving in favor of Jeff Kaplan with two outs in the top of the eighth. Getting the final out of the inning, Kaplan kept the score at 3-3 going into the ninth.

The Brooklyn offense could not come through in the bottom of the ninth however, sending the game into extra innings.

Kaplan’s night then came to an end in the tenth, as he lasted only one out into the inning after allowing a walk to Calvin Lester and a sacrifice bunt. Alfonzo was then forced to bring in Santana and things got interesting after that, as Lester stole third with only one out. Santana was on his game though, retiring both hitters he faced to keeping the game tied going into the 11th.

Santana was again on the mound after Brooklyn after the Baby Bums couldn’t produce at the plate in the tenth. This time however, the 26-year-old wasn’t as sharp and committed an error on a routine dribbler down the first base line, which opened the door for a TJ Baxter RBI single later in the inning that put Aberdeen ahead 4-3. Santana then walked the next hitter he faced and was replaced by Roy Merritt with the bases loaded. Despite striking out the first hitter he faced, Merritt soon ran into trouble of his own, walking home a run before ending the inning with the Ironbirds up 5-3.

Continuing to have problems against Aberdeen pitching, Brooklyn couldn’t get back in the ballgame, as catcher Caesar Cordido grounded into a double play after a lead-off walk in the bottom of 11th. Pinch-hitter Sean Ratliff was then retired on strikes to end the game 5-3.

With the loss, the Cyclones are eliminated for post-season play and will not make the playoffs for the first time in three seasons.

“It disappointing,” said Nieuwenhuis. “But we all worked hard this season and we played great baseball down the stretch.”

Notes-

Winning 13 of their last 16 before Friday night’s game, Brooklyn’s offense mustered only eight hits on the night.

With his 79th hit tonight, Nieuwenhuis tied the Cyclones single-season hit record with Dustin Martin and Ambiorix Concepcion.

“I had no idea,” he said. “I would have liked to get one or to more today, but the wind got them.”

Nieuwenhuis also tied the Cyclones single-season record for most games played, set by Ian Bladergroen in 2003.

Even if Brooklyn would have won on Friday, things would have remained tricky in assessing their playoff hopes. Because of the remnants of Hurricane Hanna, which has already begun to hit Brooklyn, the Cyclones may not have been able to play today’s game. Then, if Batavia would have won their season finale today and Brooklyn was unable to play due to the weather, Batavia would have made the playoffs as the wild card due to a higher win percentage. However, if Brooklyn didn’t play and either Batavia or Jamestown lost, Brooklyn would have made the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

Update: 1:30 P.M.

Today’s season finale has been canceled.

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

With just six games remaining, the Brooklyn Cyclones are sure making the New York-Penn League playoff race an interesting one.

Powered by a two-homer night from catcher Jordan Abruzzo, the Baby Bums kept their playoff hopes alive with a 3-1 win over the Hudson Valley Renegades Sunday night, climbing to just a half game behind the Jamestown Jammers for the NYPL Wild Card spot.

“It feels like we can’t lose,” said Cyclones starter Scott Shaw. “But we can’t stop there. We have six games left and we have to keep winning.”

Despite giving up eight hits, Shaw limited the Hudson Valley offense to only one run over 5.1 innings pitched.

Hudson Valley starter Shane Dyer was just as solid early on, but gave up an Abruzzo solo-homer in the fourth that gave Brooklyn a 1-0 lead.

Looking for their eighth win in a row, the Cyclones admitted they would have liked to give Shaw some more offensive support, but loved his perseverance on the mound in spite of it.

“When a pitcher doesn’t have his best stuff and pitches that way, you have to be proud,” Cyclones skipper Edgar Alfonzo said. “He gave us a chance to win tonight.”

Showing the moxie of a playoff team, the Clones got the lead right back in the bottom of the sixth after an Ike Davis single and an error by Renegades right fielder Kyeong Kang allowed Eric Campbell, who reached on an error earlier in the inning by Hudson Valley shortstop Robi Estrada, to score and give them their one-run lead back at 2-1.

Johnson continued to pitch for Brooklyn and twirled scoreless frames in the seventh and eighth, while Abruzzo added his second homer in the bottom of the eighth to put the Mets Single-A affiliate up by two runs with only one inning left to play.

Johnson then returned to the mound on the ninth and retired the side in order, giving the Baby Bums their eighth consecutive victory.

With losses by Staten Island and Jamestown on Sunday, Brooklyn is now three games out of first place in the McNamara Division and a half game back of the Wild Card.

Nevertheless, Brooklyn knows they can’t afford to count their chickens before they hatch and must continue winning in order to secure a post-season birth.

“We keep this up, who knows what could happen,” said Johnson. “We’re making it interesting. That’s for sure.”

Notes-

While the Cyclones coaching staff said on Sunday that Reese Havens’ return could be as soon as today, with the Mets first round pick taking batting practice on Sunday and looking like he’s awfully close to 100 percent, the team still feels like it may keep him out of the lineup longer.

“He’s ready to play, but I don’t know,” said Alfonzo. “In terms of his career, it’s not important for him to play right now. Maybe he’ll DH or pinch-hit here and there, but we don’t want him to go out there and get hurt and miss more time. We need to be careful.”

With Wilmer Flores thriving in Brooklyn [seven hits in his first four games], the Mets Single-A affiliate could have an interesting situation develop over the final week of the season.

Cyclones first baseman Ike Davis is hitting .351 over his past 10 games and has a nine-game hitting streak.

“I hope he keeps hitting this way,” said Alfonzo. “We need him hot over the last six games.”

Update 9:30 P.M.-

With 12 strikeouts tonight, Cyclones starter Brad Holt has broken the record for most K’s in a reason by a Brooklyn pitcher. The previous record was 93 by Kevin Deaton in 2002.

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

It’s not too often you get to see a pitcher’s duel in today’s game and it’s even rarer to see two in as many days.

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.

YouTube Direkt

Photos by Ron Hatcher. Video by Patrick Hickey Jr.