2024 Houston Cyclones Capture 35+ Sunday Division Fall Title in Houston Hardball League
Houston Hardball League, 35+ Fall Sunday Division
Houston Cyclones 8, Northside Astros 1
Submitted by Dean Cosme, Cyclones’ manager
The Houston Cyclones are champions once again as they defeated the Northside Astros 8-1 to take the Houston Hardball League 35+ Division Titles for the second time in five seasons.
On a bitterly cold and windy afternoon, the Cyclones looked to cap off a terrific season with the league’s ultimate prize, the title of HHL Fall 2024 35+ Division Champions. But before that, they had to get through the back-to-back champs, the Northside Astros. This would be the third match-up for the title in three straight seasons, with the Astros winning the last two. For the Cyclones, it would be their fifth consecutive appearance in the championship, winning the Fall 2022 title against the Marauders.
This day had a different feel to it. There was a buzz in the air that told you this would be the Cyclones game. From the get-go, things were going the Cyclone’s way. Even with a shaky start for starting pitcher Eddie Baray, The Cyclones allowed no runs in the top half of the first to set the tone. After Eddie allowed the first two batters of the inning to reach base, a line drive out to Eddie turned into a double play as Eddie quickly threw to second base to get the runner caught off second. A strikeout finished off the first inning.
In the bottom half, the Cyclones did what the Cyclones typically do, strike first and often and not relent. In this scenario, the Cyclones took full advantage of the Astros with quality at-bats and timely hitting.
The Astro’s starting pitcher was having trouble locating the strike zone early so the Cyclones worked the count into their favor and made the Astros pay for it as the first seven batters reached base and 2-RBI hits by Josh Granados and Andre Vappie gave the Cyclones an early 5-0 lead.
The Cyclones would add single runs in the third, sixth, and seventh innings but the game was effectively won in the first inning. Starter Eddie Baray kept the Astros at bay for eight innings, only allowing a run on 10 scattered hits and one walk while striking out five batters.
The other big contributor in the game was Camilo Galvez who was on base three times and scored twice, putting a lot of pressure on the Astros to keep him contained. It was a solid team effort with almost everyone reaching base at least once. Taking home the Championship Game MVP honors was Eddie Baray for his shutdown performance on the mound against the Astros.