With State College win tonight, the Staten Island Yankees are no more

Back in June, the Staten Island Yankees announced that after 17 seasons of being known as the Staten Island Yankees, the team would be changing its name. Officials disclosed that starting in 2017, the team would take on an identity of its own and drop the Yankees name.

In a statement, Team President Will Smith said: "The Staten Island community is proud to have our team here, and we believe rebranding the team to something more specific will make this local brand become more popular here, and ultimately internationally."

On September 8, the team announced the list of the five finalists under consideration for the rebranding. They include: Bridge Trolls, Heroes, Killer Bees, Pizza Rats, and Rock Pigeons.

Fans can help select the new team name over the next two weeks by visiting the team's website. Personally, I prefer the Yankees.

Imagine, the Staten Island Pizza Rats.  Kind of a creepy mascot, don’t you think?

Staten Island Yankees defeats State College Spikes in game 2

Staten Island won the second game of their playoff with the State College Spikes 3-2, after a short rain delay on Thursday night on a 10th inning home run by Drew Bridges. The teams will play again tonight at State College. The winner goes on to the New York-Penn League Championship Series against the Hudson Valley Renegades. Here is last night’s box score.

Spikes and Yankees in rain delay 2-2 in 10th inning

The State College Spikes and the Staten Island Yankees are tied 2-2 in the top of 10th inning. As of this writing, the game is in rain delay.  Link to the box score thru 9 innings.

Hudson Valley Renegades win Semi-Final Series

Hudson Valley clinched a spot in the the New York-Penn League (NYPL) Championship with a 5-3 win over the Lowell Spinners at Dutchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, NY on Thursday night. Garrett Whitley homered in the 4th inning for the Renegades to tie the score 1-1. The Renegades scored 4 more in the 6th to take a 5-3 lead on an RBI single by Miles Mastrobuoni, an RBI by ground out by Jim Haley and a two run home run by Nathaniel Lowe. Ryan Scott homered for the Spinners in the second inning and they scored two more in the 6th on a double by Carlos Tovar and a wild pitch. Pitcher Brandon Lawson got the win in relief. Kyle Hart was the losing pitching in relief, giving up 4 runs over 2 1/3 innings. Hudson Valley will play the winner of the State College Spikes-Staten Island Yankees Semi-Final in the NYPL Championship Series. Link to the game box score.

NYPL Playoffs - Game recaps for September 7

The State College Spikes, Pinckney Division Champions defeated the Wild Card entry Staten Island Yankees, 3-0 in the first game of their Semi-Final Championship series (SFS) tonight in New York. Spikes pitchers Bryan Dobzanski and Jordan DeLorenzo kept the Yankees scoreless while limiting them to 5 hits. Ryan McCarvel singled in a run in the first inning and Andy Young hit a 2 run home run in the third for the Spikes. Game 2 is tomorrow evening at State College. See complete box score.

The Lowell Spinners and Hudson Valley Renegades went into extra innings before the Renegades scored a run in the top of the 11th on a Jake Fraley home run and went on to win 6-5 before 1,743 fans. Pitcher J.D. Busfield got the win, giving up 1 run in 5 1/3 innings in relief. The second game in the series will be played tomorrow night at Hudson Valley. See complete box score.

The Stedler Report is not affiliated with Minor League Baseball or the New York-Penn League  

Playoffs start tonight in New York-Penn League

The New York-Penn League (NYPL) playoffs start tonight. Minor League baseball is the best entertainment value in America! The schedule and format are outlined below.

Wednesday, September 7, 2016: State College Spikes at the Staten Island Yankees and the Hudson Valley Renegades at the Lowell Spinners.

Thursday, September 8, 2016 schedule: Staten Island Yankees at the State College Spikes and the Lowell Spinners at the Hudson Valley Renegades.

The format for the playoffs is as follows:

The three Divisional Champions (State College Spikes, Lowell Spinners, Hudson Valley Renegades)  and one Wild Card (Staten Island Yankees) will play in two separate Semi-Final Championship Series (SFS).

The Wild Card (Staten Island Yankees) play the Division Champion with the best won/lost percentage (State College Spikes) in one SFS; and the other two Division Champions (Lowell Spinners and Hudson Valley Renegades) play each other in the other SFS.

The Division Champion (State College Spikes) playing the Wild Card (Staten Island Yankees) will host SFS Game 2 and SFS Game 3 (with the Wild Card hosting SFS Game 1) in their series; and in the series between the other two Division Champions, the Division Champion with the best won/lost percentage (Hudson Valley Renegades) will host SFS Game 2 and SFS Game 3 with the other Division Champion (Lowell Spinners) hosting SFS Game 1) in their series.

The Club winning two games first – in each SFS – is a SFS Champion.

League Championship Series (LCS) - Best two out of three.

The two SFS Champions will play in the League Championship Series (LCS).
The Division Champion with the best won/lost percentage will host LCS Game 2 and LCS Game 3 (with the other Division Champion or the Wild Card hosting LCS Game 1).
The Club winning two games first is the League Champion.

More information regarding the the NYPL playoffs is available at the NYPL website.

The Stedler Report is not affiliated with Minor League Baseball or the New York-Penn League 

What’s in a name?

The Stedler Report is a blog about baseball in the Short Season Class A New York Penn League (NYPL). It is not affiliated with Minor League Baseball, the New York Penn League, or any of its members. It’s a blog just for fun; there are no subscription fees or advertising. The intent is to provide entertaining and interesting information about minor league baseball and specifically the NYPL.

Why the name, The Stedler Report? It is named in honor of Robert C. Stedler, who was the sports editor of the Buffalo Evening News. Through his efforts, the PONY League (later known as the New York-Penn League) was organized with teams located in Pennsylvania, Ontario, and New York. He served as league president from 1939-47.