Cyclones pitching in to secure first place

Since taking first place two weeks ago, the Cyclones have been unable to gain any further headway than a game and a half past the pesky second place Greenboro Grasshoppers. With the middle of June approaching, time is winding down to earn a guaranteed postseason playoff spot as the reward for finishing on top of the division for the first half of the season.

“It’s one game at a time for us,” said manager Gilbert Gomez. “The team really wants it. We just have to do the things that are in our control.”

Upon the Cyclones’ return from Wilmington, the Mets sent rehabbing pitcher Sean Manaea (oblique) to Brooklyn to start the Asheville home stand. Manaea was masterful, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings before reaching his pitch limit. Mixing up his fastball and signature off-speed pitch, the Mets’ three-year $75 million lefty gave up just two hits and a walk while striking out four and throwing 31 out of 46 pitches for strikes.

With Manaea setting the tone for the game, fellow lefty Jonathan Santucci came in for the fourth inning to pitch 4.1 innings in relief to give the Cyclones their 14th straight home win. In addition to Cyclone pitching, it was also the offensive efforts from two key players that set the Brooklyn scoring into motion. Shortstop Boston Baro went 3-for-5 with two RBIs, while right fielder Carson Benge went 3-for-4 with three RBIs for the final 8-2 Brooklyn win. 

Besides the needed offense to win games, lately Cyclone pitching has taken center stage and was on display for one of Brooklyn’s games in the last road series at Wilmington. After taking a hard-luck 2-0 loss to the Blue Claws, the Cyclones came back the next night in a classic pitching performance for a 1-0 win.  In a “piggyback” pairing, Nate Dohm earned his first win of the season, while Noah Hall, ordinarily a starter, earned his first save to close out the game for the shutout.

Dohm, the Mets’ third pick of the 2023 draft, from Mississippi State, got the win by pitching five full innings while giving up just two hits and striking out six. Relying on his fastball and a mix of pitches, Dohm was able to retire his last nine batters after giving up two doubles.

“Piggybacking” out of the bullpen to finish the game, Noah Hall gave up just one hit and also had six strikeouts over four innings. In the eighth inning, Hall had his teammates on the edge of their seats when he finally induced a fly to center to end the inning with the bases loaded and two outs.

Hall also got in trouble again with two outs in the ninth when he gave up a double off the center field wall. Then, throwing inside, Hall put the winning run on first base with a close pitch that hit the next batter. Finally, with two outs and two runners on base, Hall bored down and induced a pop-up to the infield to give the Cyclones the hard-fought 1-0 win.

“We really needed that game, especially after that 2-0 loss the night before,” said Gomez. “I knew that Hall wanted it and that he had it in him to finish the game even though he was trouble. He’s been a [bull] dog for us all season long.”