Cyclones Top Baby Bombers For 5th Straight Home Opener
By Neil S. Friedman

Cyclones manager Mookie Wilson goes over the ground rules with an umpire before start of season opener at KeySpan Park last week.

When the Brooklyn Cyclones opened the 2005 season last week at KeySpan Park in Coney Island, it was the first day of summer, as well as the managerial debut of former New York Mets’ player (1980-89) and coach (1996-2002) Mookie (nee William Hayward) Wilson.

As Wilson did media interviews on the field before the game, those in the stands chanted, “Mookie, Mookie,” and he responded with that familiar warm smile and a wave.

Joan Hodges, widow of former Brooklyn Dodgers first baseman and New York Mets manager, Gil Hodges, is flanked by Mookie Wilson (left) and former major league player and coach Joe Pignatano.

Cheered almost as loudly as Wilson was 29-year-old “American Idol 4” contestant Constantine Maroulis, a Brooklyn native who’ll be touring this summer with the “American Idols Live” tour. Maroulis sang a rocking, first-rate rendition of the National Anthem that the crowd enthusiastically applauded.

On a weather-perfect night with a gentle, steady breeze blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean over the right field wall, a record-setting crowd of 9,300, which broke the previous record by almost 300 set two summers ago, watched the Cyclones extend their home opener winning streak to five with a 10-7 victory over the Staten Island Yankees on June 21. Three of those wins have come against the Baby Bombers.

Former “American Idol”finalist and Brooklyn native Constantine Maroulis (left) poses with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz before singing the National Anthem.

With only three days to work with players before the opener, the tone set by Wilson— aggression and speed — should be familiar to those who remember Mookie’s decade with the Mets, as the Cyclones stole six bases in nine attempts.

Early season jitters seemed to have affected both teams, which committed a combined seven errors and four wild pitches. A Yankees’ miscue in the first led to the Cyclones’ first two runs. In the second, a wild pitch added another run followed by a run-scoring single that put the Cyclones ahead, 3-0. Brooklyn added another run in the fourth.

A Cyclones’ wild pitch in the fifth and a base hit with a man on second put the Yankees within 2. The Yankees then loaded the bases in the fifth, but Cyclones’ starter Jeff Lander struck out the next batter to end the threat.

Over six innings, Landing was steady, giving up two runs, six hits and striking out four. He retired nine of the first 11 batters he faced, but did not get the decision. Cyclones’ reliever Travis Hope allowed the Yankees to tie the score at four in the sixth inning, and got the victory.

Brooklyn went ahead for good in the seventh on Jesus Gamero’s two-run homer off the left-centerfield scoreboard.

The Cyclones perfect record didn’t last long as they were defeated 5-2 the next night by the Yankees on Staten Island. But the Cyclones topped the Baby Bombers last Thursday, 6-4, to take a season series 2-1 lead.

Photos by Milton Signman Walters