Cyclones and Renegades battle for first place 

After a lively pregame poll was completed on the field before the Greensboro game, Brooklyn Cyclones head groundskeeper Kaitlin Hertz confirmed the results, saying, “Yes, of course, Scotty the Leprechaun is everyone’s favorite mascot on Irish Night!” In his 15th straight Irish Heritage Night appearance, actor Scott G. Seidman once again threw out the first ceremonial pitch to propel Brooklyn to a successful start to the second half of the season.

Since the beginning of August, the Cyclones (Mets) and the Hudson Valley Renegades (Yankees) have bounced back and forth in first place in the South Atlantic League’s North Division. After splitting a six-game road series in Wilmington, the Cyclones are just clinging to first place by half a game as they open this week’s homestand against the second-place Renegades.

One of the pitchers keeping the Cyclones in first place is Luis Moreno, who was named the Sally League’s Pitcher of the Week for July 25-31. To earn the honor, Moreno pitched six scoreless innings against Hudson Valley while giving up just two hits and striking out seven. In addition to the Hudson Valley game, during July, Moreno had a 1.44 ERA with 25 strikeouts over four starts.

Stanley Conseugra continues to rake the ball for Brooklyn. Since his call-up from St. Lucie on July 4, he’s been a strong defender in the outfield and a good hitter at the top of the order. During the recent road trip to the Jersey Shore and Hudson Valley, he hit .317 with seven extra base hits in 10 games.

Besides Conseugra’s regular hitting, late-inning home runs by Joe Suozzi and Matt Rudick accounted for two of three Cyclone wins over Wilmington last week. However, no late-inning homer was more important last week than Matt O’Neil’s second of the season. His 425-foot pinch-hit blast in the ninth inning gave the Cyclones a 6-5 win for first place as the catcher from Morristown, N.J., joined last week’s “Unlikely Heroes Club.”

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