Cyclones will see you in September

Just like the Happenings’ 1966 hit song “See You in September,” the Cyclones guaranteed their fans will see them in first round of the playoffs as Brooklyn finished with the best record (46-20) for the first half of the season in the North Division of the South Atlantic League.

After gaining first place a month ago by a game and a half over the second place Greensboro Grasshoppers, the Cyclones fought every game to increase their lead to win the division. In the last week of the first half, on June 19, Greensboro continued to hang on by just half a game behind the Cyclones until Brooklyn’s 6-4 win over Aberdeen to clinch first place on the last day of the first half’s schedule. 

The team clinched the High-A playoff berth with an impressive 26-7 record at home.  Part of that home record included two six-game sweeps for an overall 17-4 record over a three-week period in mid-May. In fact, when the team clinched in Aberdeen, it was their 11th comeback win – a trademark in the first half.

Going up against the Ironbirds in Aberdeen for their dramatic 6-4 clinching win, the Cyclones struck first as Marco Vargas hit an RBI single for a 1-0 first inning lead.  Boston Baro followed with an RBI triple that increased the lead to 2-0 by the second inning.

The Ironbirds fought back to take the lead 4-3 as the Cyclones came to bat in the eighth inning. With two runners on base, hot-hitting catcher Chris Suero sent a rocket to the right-field stands for a three-run homer that brought the entire team out to the field to congratulate their first-half hero.

After the club took five of six games in Aberdeen, broadcaster Justin Rocke summed up their first-half performance.

“The Cyclones led the league in the first half 75 to 24 runs since the eighth inning and that is why they won,” he said. “They’ve become known as the Comeback Clones.”