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The Brooklyn Cyclones open their season tonight, taking on their rivals, the Staten Island Yankees, in a three-game series split between Richmond County Bank Ballpark on the island and MCU Park in Coney Island. Tom Gamboa will be at the helm for his second year. Dave LaRoche, father of Adam and Andy, will serve as pitching coach, filling in for the departed Tom Signore, while Yunir Garcia will be hitting coach, replacing Benny Distefano.
PITCHERS
| Name | B/T | Height | Weight | Age (DOB) | 2014 Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Almonte, Gaby | R/R | 6’2" | 185 | 22 (8/15/92) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Badamo, Tyler | R/R | 6’2" | 215 | 22 (8/08/92) | RK (GCL Mets) |
| Blackham, Matt | R/R | 5’11" | 150 | 22 (1/07/93) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Blank, Nicco | R/R | 5’10" | 170 | 22 (11/29/92) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Bumgardner, Gaither | R/R | 6'6" | 210 | 24 (1/29/91) | Short-A |
| Canelon, Kevin | L/L | 6’1" | 175 | 21 (1/16/94) | RK (GCL Mets) |
| Celas, Jose | R/R | 6’1" | 180 | 23 (12/01/91) | RK (GCL Mets) |
| Conlon, P.J. | L/L | 6’ | 175 | 21 (11/11/93) | NCAA (University of San Diego) |
| Gibbons, Michael | R/R | 6’4" | 205 | 22 (4/24/93) | NCAA (Wheaton College) |
| Missigman, Craig | L/L | 6’3" | 180 | 22 (8/05/93) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Montgomery, Christian | R/R | 6’2" | 210 | 22 (11/20/92) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Palsha, Alex | R/R | 6’2" | 205 | 23 (5/10/92) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Reyes, Rubin | L/L | 6’4" | 180 | 24 (9/22/90) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Taylor, Corey | R/R | 6’1" | 250 | 22 (1/08/93) | NCAA (Texas Tech) |
| Valdez, Carlos | L/L | 6’ | 170 | 24 (9/30/90) | Short-A |
| Williams, Ty | R/R | 6’2" | 195 | 21 (2/21/94) | RK (Kingsport) |
CATCHERS
| Name | B/T | Height | Weight | Age (DOB) | 2014 Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garcia, Jose | S/R | 6’0" | 185 | 20 (11/03/94) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Hilario, Manuel | R/R | 5’10" | 170 | 23 (2/10/92) | RK (GCL Mets) |
INFIELDERS
| Name | B/T | Height | Weight | Age (DOB) | 2014 Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diehl, Jeff | R/R | 6’4" | 195 | 21 (9/30/93) | Short-A |
| Fulmer, Will | R/R | 5’10" | 185 | 23 (1/08/92) | Short-A |
| Katz, Michael | R/R | 6’3" | 235 | 22 (8/06/92) | Short-A |
| Kaupe, Branden | S/R | 5’8" | 180 | 21 (4/10/94) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Mathieu, Zach | R/R | 6’7" | 290 | 23 (11/25/91) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Perez, Pedro | R/R | 6’1" | 190 | 20 (8/31/94) | RK (Kingsport), Short-A |
| Reyes, Alfredo | R/R | 6’2" | 180 | 21 (10/04/93) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Siena, Vinny | R/R | 5’10" | 190 | 21 (12/24/93) | NCAA (University of Connecticut) |
OUTFIELDERS
| Name | B/T | Height | Weight | Age (DOB) | 2014 Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernal, Michael | R/R | 6’1" | 195 | 23 (12/27/91) | Short-A |
| Carabello, Oswald | R/R | 6’2" | 180 | 22 (1/05/93) | RK (Kingsport) |
| Tharp, Tucker | R/R | 5’11" | 200 | 23 (11/25/91) | Short-A |
| Zabala, Enmanuel | R/R | 6’ | 185 | 23 (9/24/94) | RK (GCL Mets) |
PLAYERS TO WATCH
After hitting .177/.227/.290 in 19 games with the Savannah Sand Gnats, Pedro Perez has been reassigned to a more age-appropriate level for him. Perez is still very raw, but has impressive tools. Can he improve on his pitch recognition and approach at the plate in order to best harness those tools?
Tyler Badamo is wise beyond his years, both on and off the field. A local kid, Badamo outperformed expectations in his first professional season. Brooklyn's de facto number one starter, can Badamo log another good season and show he is more than meets the eye?
Drafted 419th overall in the 2015 MLB Draft, Vinny Siena is surprisingly talented for someone drafted in the 14th round. Identified by our own Alex Nelson as having an effective line-drive swing, good speed, a strong arm and decent range, Siena has a chance at developing into an MLB regular. Will he be able to develop the necessary pitch recognition and plate discipline to do so?