My baseball past and present collided Monday night at the Staten Island Yankees game. As many of you know, I grew up in beautiful Upstate New York north of Oneonta and south of Cooperstown, home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Oneonta was the home of the Oneonta Yankees where I watched greats like Don Mattingly and John Elway when he didn't want to play for the Indianapolis Colts. I don't blame him because the Colts sucked and Elway made $150,000 for playing only 2.5 months of short summer Class A baseball. I also watched Buck Showalter manage the Oneonta Yankees to a couple of NY-Penn League titles. I even blended my Oneonta Yankees passion with a local bank promotion that would give me an extra .01 percent for each win on the few hundreds dollars in my savings account. Therefore, I was a Oneonta and New York Yankees fan hook, line, and sinker.

When former NYC mayor Rudy Guiliani and Yankee owner George Steinbrenner to transfer the Oneonta Yankees to Staten Island in the late 1990s. I have been in mourning until tonight. The closest I have been in the SI Yankee parking lot for the Start/Finish of the SI Half Marathon in October 2004 and 2005.

The gang took a while to rally at the South Ferry in southern Manhattan. Vicky, Linda's Mom, James, Chris, and Steve are the new additions from Friday night. As the SI Ferry pulled into SI, my stomach filled with butterflies. It's time for closure and to play ball. I crossed myself and asked for forgiveness from my Oneonta brethren. As Saint George is my patron saint, I was comforted by walking into the "Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George" and settled into my awesome seat, third row behind the Brooklyn Cyclones dugout -- the best seats I have ever been in. Kudos to Linda for another great great ticket purchase!!

Now that I have started to get past my past, who do I root for? My borough, Brooklyn Cyclones, or past, SI Yankees. I am sitting in between two Mets die-hards, Steve and Doris. What do I do?

In addition to my nerves, Linda's cousins, Tommaso and Marta, are visiting the States from Italy and I also wondered what their reaction to "Italian Heritage Night", Staten Island style. The problem with these nights is that they are dated by the frame of reference of the immigrants that came here decades ago. I notice this with my parents from the former Yugoslavia as well. It is sometimes easier for me to talk to people their age because of a common reference point, values, and respect than my age because kids my age want to be "American" and "modern".

The Cyclones pitcher is pitching a no-hitter through three innings and the Italian Heritage is starting to kick in with King Henry eating Italian Ices and the scoreboard honoring the local Knights of Columbus.

Our section won the enthusiasm contest. Huck the Cow sits two rows in front of us. Seth Fortenberry is Steve's new favorite player as they share a common ethnic heritage. Steve and I are networking with our new fledgling sponsors the "Liquor Depot" who also DJ at "Redemption" in Manhattan. Steve and I are big in the community.

The Cyclones no-hitter holds through four innings. Steve is trying to get Huck in trouble as a Jose Reyes fan.

Meatball Eating contest going into the bottom of the fifth. Steve should be in the contest.

Linda tries to explain baseball in Italian to her cousins. I find the Italian baseball link on Wikipedia and give it to Linda and she gives it to Tommaso and Marta to read in their native tongue as we take in the game. God Bless the Internet!

In the top of the sixth, Brooklyn bunts a guy on but he is thrown out as the catcher overthrows first and is thrown out while trying to go to second.

The spinning of the heads on the baseball bat is the feature going into the bottom of the sixth. Mike beats out Jim.

Steve smells the salt of the sea or is it Mike's sweat he wonders out loud.

No hitter through sixth. Happy birthdays on the left center field scoreboard going into the seventh.

To inspire her fellow Canadian, Sara removes her jacket and he singles to center. He is sacrificed to second. Steve is not going to the restroom until the Yankees get a hit. He is keeping it in for the team.

"That's Amore" finally comes on as I thought the SI Yankees would have had more Italian heritage than a sushi toss earlier in the game. 

Steve nominates Sara as our mascot and offers to make g-strings "un-sexy as it hurts my bum". Even TMI (Too Much Information) for The Tank.

Back to the game, #11 flies out to end of the top.

An eight or nine year girl does a great job of singing "God Bless America" during the Seventh Inning Stretch.

Chevy's is the current promotion as Steve wants a quesadilla. He didn't win it and the ball girl didn't throw me a ceremonial softball souvenir even though Steve pointed to me and many in our section rallied to our cause. A lady behind me tells me that it is going to be another 30 years before I get a foul ball. Not comforting! I am definitely the Charlie Brown of the baseball souvenir world.

Steve's fruity cousin, Fortenberry, grounds out to start the bottom of the seventh. Larsen breaks up the no hitter with two out in the bottom of the seventh and #30 is pulled. Our inaugural sponsors encourage me to go to rally cap mode.

Huck and his friends are dancing the YMCA during the pitching change.

Curtis doubles in Larsen and the SI Yankees take a 1-0 lead. Linda and her Mom both blame Steve for going to the restroom for the Yankees taking the lead. Steve returns to the seat while the Yankees fly out to end the seventh.

Going to the top of the eighth, I am encouraged to go to the restroom so the Cyclones start a rally. I get some water, a lemonade, and even a funnel cake and the Cyclones get a walk while I still don't return to my seat. The Cyclones fly out to end the game. The Yankees win 1-0.

Go Cyclones! / Mets! / Yankees!

P.S. I tried to run the bases like I did after the Cyclones departmental outing last year. The usher let me through tonight but the power tool lady at the first base line did NOT let me run the bases. That seals my conflict, I am rooting for the Cyclones from here on out. Go Cyclones!

P.S.S. This is Steve's second minor league game!!

Posted by Steve and The Tank live from Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George