It all begins again for the Staten Island Yankees later tonight when they face their Verrazano rivals the Brooklyn Cyclones at Coney Island.

The past two seasons were as good as it gets for the Baby Bombers on the field as they went on to capture back-to-back New York-Penn League championships. Now with new management in place and a new skipper in Mike Gillespie, they’ll take aim at a three-peat.

Last year’s championship team produced several All Stars including third baseman Mitch Hilligoss who is set to take part in the South Atlantic League All Star Game with 2006 teammate Jonathan Hovis ironically enough on the same night his former team returns to the field at Key Span Park.

This season, three returning players will begin the summer at St. George, including Penn League All Star reliever Nick Peterson, starter Angel Reyes and third baseman Tim O’Brien. Much like James Cooper and Nick Larsen last year, they’ll look to provide leadership for such newcomers as Dellin Betances, Gabriel Medina, Justin Snyder and David Williams.

The new batch of Baby Bombers should really enjoy the environment when they play host to the Cyclones in a home opener which is a sellout. There always is plenty of energy and electricity whenever the rivals meet. But with a packed house, it should be even taken to a whole new level at Richmond County Bank Ball Park tomorrow night.

With more fans expected to support the team due to a smart organizational plan which features all the food you can eat, a meeting with Yankee GM Brian Cashman and an Old Timer’s Day, it should be even more fun for everyone this summer.

Get ready for another great season. We’ll be covering it all summer long!