The Nassau Yankees (AA) got back on track after an opening day loss to the NY Tigers, sweeping the Cubs in an April 16 double header at Randall’s Island, beating the Central Park Cubs 19-0 in game one before staging a late-game rally to steal game two 7-6.

The Yankees scored six runs in the bottom of the 6^th inning, taking advantage of a number of walks before Jason Friedman’s double drove in two runs to tie the score.  Luis Colon crossed the plate for the winning run in the seventh after a Cubs’ miscue awarded him an extra base. For the defending Bronx/Manhattan regular season champs, the games served as some sort of redemption from last year, when the Cubs ousted the Yanks in the first round of the playoffs.

“Suffering an upset to the Cubs in the first round, we are pleased with the win,” said Yankees manager Victor Catano.   “We historically don't play well against them and, hopefully, this win sets the tone for a great season.”

Two Brooklyn/Queens Division squads took the field at Randall’s after the Cubs-Yankees tilt, as the BQE went head-to-head with the NY Pirates. Despite drubbing the Pirates 10-0 in the first game, the BQE had a tougher time in game two, as the Pirates came away with a 5-2 win.

The Bucs’ Jason Valentin was superb in the nightcap, pitching a complete game and allowing just four hits to a lineup that exploded for 11 in game one. One adjustment the Pirates made in game two was to keep the ball away from BQE cleanup hitter Bill Pisani. Pisani (who is currently hitting .727 with 1 HR and 5 RBIs) was walked twice by Valentin.

“I expect Pisani to be in the top three of all offensive categories by the end of the year,” said BQE manager Bryan Burney. “As for the Pirates, they don’t walk people and they capitalize on mistakes. Teams like that always seem to stay in the mix.”

In the ‘A’ division, the Prospects made a statement on Monday night, thrashing the NY Courts Bluesox 16-3 in a five-inning mercy rule game. Holding a three-run lead heading into the third inning, the Prospects jumped all over Bluesox starter Chris Gallo to hang 13 runs on the hurler. Julian Andre Monserrate, who picked up the win for the Prospects, also made his presence felt at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a triple and 3 RBIs. The Prospects are now 1-2 on the year, and get set to play the Brooklyn Cubs on April 20.