When Baseball Returned to Brooklyn
The Inaugural Season of the New York–Penn League Cyclones

Ed Shakespeare

ISBN: 0-7864-1459-6
[312] pp. photographs, statistics, appendix, bibliography, index $29.95 softcover 2003
Published by McFarland Press

Major league baseball has a long, rich history in Brooklyn. From the time Brooklyn started play in 1884 until their move west to Los Angeles following the 1957 season, the Dodgers and their predecessors were the emotional center of the borough’s diverse population. But Brooklyn would be without a professional team until June of 2001, when the Cyclones took the field in Coney Island as the Mets’ affiliate for the New York–Penn League.

This work follows the rookie-level club from its formation through it first season. Brooklyn Dodgers Carl Erskine, Duke Snider, Clem Labine, Johnny Podres, Ralph Branca, Joe Pignatano and Clyde King comment on their own minor league days, and their days in Brooklyn. Also included are interviews of Cyclones players and fans of both teams.

Ed Shakespeare, a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association, has seen the Dodgers play at Ebbets Field. He has also written for the theater and on baseball for children. He lives in Lavallette, New Jersey.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii
Foreword—Carl Erskine 1
Prologue 3
Introduction 15

INNING 1: Spring Training 27
INNING 2: The Players 52
INNING 3: Brooklyn 81
INNING 4: Opening Day 125
INNING 5: Cyclone Road Trip 169
INNING 6: The Media 209
INNING 7: The New York—Penn League 242
INNING 8: The Playoffs 257
INNING 9: The Big Dance 295
Extra Innings 305
Epilogue 312

Appendix 321
Sources 333
Selected Bibliography 335
Index 337

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Ed Shakespeare lives in Lavallette, New Jersey. E-mail: ershakespeare@hotmail.com