A few years back, the Cyclones began an effort called Take Your Base to help raise awareness and money for cancer support and cancer research, in a partnership with the American Cancer Society. The event began as a 5k walk along the famed Coney Island boardwalk ("Take Your Base," "walk," get it? Get it?) and has since become a run/walk, opening itself up to a whole new group of athletes.
Take Your base (TYB) has grown each year, and has -- in its brief four year history -- raised over $70,000 for the American Cancer Society. This year, the TYB event takes place on June 21st, and you can sign up or donate now!
Whether you walk (or run) for yourself, to remember someone you've lost, to support someone who's struggling, or just to bond with others fighting for a common goal, TYB is a fun event for a worthy cause, and a great way to kick off the summer.
Our players and coaches walk alongside the participants, and it's great to see the impact the stories of survivors, friends, and family of those who battle cancer make on the young men wearing the Brooklyn uniform.
Join us on June 21st for the fifth annual edition of Take Your Base, and take your place in the fight against cancer!
For more information, you can also contact Elizabeth Lombardi or Sharon Lundy-Ross, who head up the TYB initiative.
-- Dave
Monday, March 9, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Blarney Rubble
On Saturday, Kevin Mahoney was officially named a deputy in the Bay Ridge St. Patrick's Day Parade, and was honored as part of a dinner at the Dyker Beach Golf Club.
I walked into the cocktail hour and was pleasantly surprised (and utterly shocked) to see Kevin wearing a Miss America-styled sash made of bright, shiny green, orange and white cloth. Knowing how much Kevin loved the attention and the idea of wearing the aforementioned sash, my colleagues and I made a pact to stay low-key, avoid creating a spectacle, and treat the entire event with the utmost reverence.
As a deputy (and that, by the way, is the official title...not "Grand Poobah," as Steve was referring to him all night), Kevin was called to the center of the room, introduced (not only as the AGM of the Cyclones, but as the North American record-holder for consecutive innings/hours pitched), and then forced to stand in place for approximately 37 hours worth of speeches, step dancing, speeches, river dancing, speeches, bagpipers, and speeches. At one point, I think he lost consciousness.
In all honesty, though, it was a great night, and the parade will, of course, be incredibly fun. I grew up in Bay Ridge, and the St. Patty's Parade is a tradition not to be missed!
And although he's usually not too keen on having his picture taken (think Sean Penn vs. the paparazzi...on steroids), on this one night, at least, Kevin was in a great mood -- and I even have the picture to prove it!
See you at the parade (if Kevin doesn't kill me first)!
-- Dave
I walked into the cocktail hour and was pleasantly surprised (and utterly shocked) to see Kevin wearing a Miss America-styled sash made of bright, shiny green, orange and white cloth. Knowing how much Kevin loved the attention and the idea of wearing the aforementioned sash, my colleagues and I made a pact to stay low-key, avoid creating a spectacle, and treat the entire event with the utmost reverence.
As a deputy (and that, by the way, is the official title...not "Grand Poobah," as Steve was referring to him all night), Kevin was called to the center of the room, introduced (not only as the AGM of the Cyclones, but as the North American record-holder for consecutive innings/hours pitched), and then forced to stand in place for approximately 37 hours worth of speeches, step dancing, speeches, river dancing, speeches, bagpipers, and speeches. At one point, I think he lost consciousness.
In all honesty, though, it was a great night, and the parade will, of course, be incredibly fun. I grew up in Bay Ridge, and the St. Patty's Parade is a tradition not to be missed!
And although he's usually not too keen on having his picture taken (think Sean Penn vs. the paparazzi...on steroids), on this one night, at least, Kevin was in a great mood -- and I even have the picture to prove it!
See you at the parade (if Kevin doesn't kill me first)!
-- Dave
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Gee Unit
Nice to see baseball back in full swing, and even nicer to see some former Cyclones pitchers in Mets camp early this spring.
The week started off with so-so reports on the Cyclones alum. Tobi Stoner was shut down with shoulder soreness (mostly precautionary, they say) and Mike Antonini gave up a pair of "massive" home runs (but they were in an intrasquad game to Carlos Beltran and David Wright...try to find me a pitcher who those guys haven't gone gonzo off of).
Today, however, Dillon Gee got the good guys back on the scoreboard, tossing two shutout innings against the Marlins, allowing just one infield hit and striking out two Fish. Gee had a phenomenal year for the Cyclones in 2007, finishing sixth in the league with a 2.47 ERA. He allowed one run or less in seven of his 11 starts, and showed pinpoint control, striking out 56 batters while walking just nine in 62 innings. Nine. Ricky had nine walks in a third of an inning during 24 Hours of Baseball!
We wish all three pitchers the best of luck and we'll keep following them this spring!
-- Dave
The week started off with so-so reports on the Cyclones alum. Tobi Stoner was shut down with shoulder soreness (mostly precautionary, they say) and Mike Antonini gave up a pair of "massive" home runs (but they were in an intrasquad game to Carlos Beltran and David Wright...try to find me a pitcher who those guys haven't gone gonzo off of).
Today, however, Dillon Gee got the good guys back on the scoreboard, tossing two shutout innings against the Marlins, allowing just one infield hit and striking out two Fish. Gee had a phenomenal year for the Cyclones in 2007, finishing sixth in the league with a 2.47 ERA. He allowed one run or less in seven of his 11 starts, and showed pinpoint control, striking out 56 batters while walking just nine in 62 innings. Nine. Ricky had nine walks in a third of an inning during 24 Hours of Baseball!
We wish all three pitchers the best of luck and we'll keep following them this spring!
-- Dave
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Mad Props
It's things like this that lead to Christian Bale-scale meltdowns.
KJ and I have been working on a new ad concept, promoting the Grub Club (free food, $50 in savings, etc.). I thought it would be appealing/interesting/eye-catching to set up some food on and around home plate, as opposed to a dinner plate -- creating a picture of a meal with a subtle baseball element incorporated. Pretty good, right? OK, so now all we have to do is get our props together, and set up the shot.
Not as easy as it sounds.
To start with, home plate has beenstolen ahem, misplaced. Not the one on the field, but the spare one we have that we were planning to use indoors. But it's like minus-10 degrees outside with the wind, so we switch to one of the little collectible replicas they sell in the team store.
Next, the food. The kitchen has been closed for some time now, so we need to venture out into the real world to buy food items that you can get here during the summer. The hot dog and soda were easy. The ice cream was a bit more challenging, but we found some. Then, the chips. We work with a specific vendor for the chips in the ballpark, so any old bag wouldn't do. It had to be Utz (which, incidentally is the best, anyway). After three stops -- involving a half-hour's worth of trips into the bitter cold, arguments with deli clerks, and a near-miss in the parking lot -- we finally found the right bag. OK, mission accomplished. Finally. We head back to the park, and set up the photo shoot in conference room.
And that's when Steve walks in.
Anyway, we improvised on the chips, and got the shot...and it does make for a good story.
Look for the ad in the paper in the coming days, and check out the Grub Club offer. Five games, with over $10 of free food at each game! It's really a great deal!
-- Dave
UPDATE: The picture turned out pretty well. You can see it here. The food, however, was left out on the table overnight (my fault), and became a topic of conversation in the conference room this afternoon, until Ricky finally went ahead and ate the three-day-old hot dog, then dipped the two-day old sour cream & onion chips in the two-day old melted ice cream and ate that for dessert. And no one put him up to this, mind you. He just did it. The man has problems.
KJ and I have been working on a new ad concept, promoting the Grub Club (free food, $50 in savings, etc.). I thought it would be appealing/interesting/eye-catching to set up some food on and around home plate, as opposed to a dinner plate -- creating a picture of a meal with a subtle baseball element incorporated. Pretty good, right? OK, so now all we have to do is get our props together, and set up the shot.
Not as easy as it sounds.
To start with, home plate has been
Next, the food. The kitchen has been closed for some time now, so we need to venture out into the real world to buy food items that you can get here during the summer. The hot dog and soda were easy. The ice cream was a bit more challenging, but we found some. Then, the chips. We work with a specific vendor for the chips in the ballpark, so any old bag wouldn't do. It had to be Utz (which, incidentally is the best, anyway). After three stops -- involving a half-hour's worth of trips into the bitter cold, arguments with deli clerks, and a near-miss in the parking lot -- we finally found the right bag. OK, mission accomplished. Finally. We head back to the park, and set up the photo shoot in conference room.
And that's when Steve walks in.
Steve: "What's this going to look like in the ad?"I kid you not, as we had this two-sentence conversation, Steve -- almost as if by muscle memory alone -- ripped open the bag and started eating the chips.
Me (still flustered and frustrated from my last 30 minutes): "Pretty much like what you're looking at, since we'll just be taking a picture of it."
Me (horrified): "Um, that's probably not going to be a great-looking prop anymore, now that you've torn into it.Sometimes you just have to laugh, right? Either that, or go on a profanity-laced rampage that winds up being mocked, reenacted, and viewed or listened to millions of times on TMZ or YouTube.
Steve (with Sour Cream & Onion chips still on his lips): "Oooooh. Sorry. I didn't even realize that. Makes for a good story, though, huh?"
Anyway, we improvised on the chips, and got the shot...and it does make for a good story.
Look for the ad in the paper in the coming days, and check out the Grub Club offer. Five games, with over $10 of free food at each game! It's really a great deal!
-- Dave
UPDATE: The picture turned out pretty well. You can see it here. The food, however, was left out on the table overnight (my fault), and became a topic of conversation in the conference room this afternoon, until Ricky finally went ahead and ate the three-day-old hot dog, then dipped the two-day old sour cream & onion chips in the two-day old melted ice cream and ate that for dessert. And no one put him up to this, mind you. He just did it. The man has problems.
Monday, February 23, 2009
More for Your Money
I'm not going to break into a recession song and dance, like Wolverine did last night, but in a time when we are flooded by the gloom and doom of the current economic crisis, I do want to point out once again that there is absolutely no better entertainment value for your dollar than Brooklyn Cyclones baseball.
Really, it's almost silly how much you get for your money when you buy a Cyclones ticket. Tickets range from just $5 to $15, and in addition to seeing baseball's stars of tomorrow and a team that has made the playoffs in five of eight seasons, you practically make your money back with all the free things we give you, throw at you, or let you win.
Almost every game has a free giveaway, a fireworks show, or some type of special appearance. You are literally handed free goodies as you walk into the park, more free stuff is tossed into the stands all game long, and just in case you still have any space left in your hands, pockets, fanny packs, or kangaROOS, we give you more swag as you leave the park. T-Shirts, collectibles, baseball caps, bobbleheads, bumper stickers, balloons, baseballs -- there's no end to what you'll be loading in your car at the end of the night, along with all the great memories.
And I don't mean to sound like the ShamWow guy, but "wait...there's more!" (You following me, camera guy?) When you buy a ticket plan, or a block of group tickets, you get even more great stuff for free!
This year, we're introducing the Grub Club, which lets you eat for free at every game in your plan, and the We Win, You Win plan, which lets you legally bet on the Cyclones! (Well, kind of...if we win any of the games in that plan, you get FREE tickets to another game!) When you buy 20 or more tickets as a group, you get discounted prices, and every single member of your group gets a free high-quality Cyclones cap.
It's really kind of ridiculous. Can you imagine going to the movies (a similar $10-$12 venture) and having an usher give you a free t-shirt, free food, and telling you that if you like the movie, you can come back and see another one for free? Of course not.
With all of the action on and off the field, there is just no better way to beat the recession than by getting tickets to see the Cyclones! A night out to entertain yourself, your friends, and your family for less than $15, and loads of free stuff that makes you feel like you're getting a big-company bailout.
Like Mr. ShamWow says, "I don't know...it sells itself."
(Of course, it doesn't actually sell itself, so go to brooklyncyclones.com to get your tickets today!)
-- Dave
Really, it's almost silly how much you get for your money when you buy a Cyclones ticket. Tickets range from just $5 to $15, and in addition to seeing baseball's stars of tomorrow and a team that has made the playoffs in five of eight seasons, you practically make your money back with all the free things we give you, throw at you, or let you win.
Almost every game has a free giveaway, a fireworks show, or some type of special appearance. You are literally handed free goodies as you walk into the park, more free stuff is tossed into the stands all game long, and just in case you still have any space left in your hands, pockets, fanny packs, or kangaROOS, we give you more swag as you leave the park. T-Shirts, collectibles, baseball caps, bobbleheads, bumper stickers, balloons, baseballs -- there's no end to what you'll be loading in your car at the end of the night, along with all the great memories.
And I don't mean to sound like the ShamWow guy, but "wait...there's more!" (You following me, camera guy?) When you buy a ticket plan, or a block of group tickets, you get even more great stuff for free!
This year, we're introducing the Grub Club, which lets you eat for free at every game in your plan, and the We Win, You Win plan, which lets you legally bet on the Cyclones! (Well, kind of...if we win any of the games in that plan, you get FREE tickets to another game!) When you buy 20 or more tickets as a group, you get discounted prices, and every single member of your group gets a free high-quality Cyclones cap.
It's really kind of ridiculous. Can you imagine going to the movies (a similar $10-$12 venture) and having an usher give you a free t-shirt, free food, and telling you that if you like the movie, you can come back and see another one for free? Of course not.
With all of the action on and off the field, there is just no better way to beat the recession than by getting tickets to see the Cyclones! A night out to entertain yourself, your friends, and your family for less than $15, and loads of free stuff that makes you feel like you're getting a big-company bailout.
Like Mr. ShamWow says, "I don't know...it sells itself."
(Of course, it doesn't actually sell itself, so go to brooklyncyclones.com to get your tickets today!)
-- Dave
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
