Later tonight, the Staten Island Yankees will look to make it three straight against their Verrazano rival Brooklyn Cyclones at the ballpark in St. George.

After losing the big four-game series opener Friday despite a furious ninth inning rally which fell short, the Baby Bombers have responded with back-to-back wins taking Saturday’s game 4-1 and blowing out the Baby Bums at Keyspan last night 15-2. Staten Island batted around in the first inning scoring five runs KO-ing Cyclone starter Tim Stronach.

First baseman Brian Baisley continued to swing a sizzling bat driving in two of his game high six with a two-run triple getting the party started. Consecutive RBI hits by Addison Maruszak (double), Dan Brewer (single) and Mike Lyon (triple) made it a five-run inning.

While winning starter David Phelps was busy putting up zeros in the first five for his fourth victory of the season, his teammates continued to pound Brooklyn pitching putting up an eight spot in the fourth highlighted by a Baisley grand slam (team-leading 4th HR) and left fielder Taylor Grote’s first home run as a pro- a three-run job with the two dingers accounting for seven of the eight runs with Lyon’s run scoring double sandwiched between.

Though the ‘Clones scored a run each in the seventh and eighth off relievers Tim Dennehy and Jacinto Gonell including a Jose Jimenez solo shot, a game which included a lengthy one hour and 35 minute rain delay had been long decided. The Bombers tacked on two more in the ninth on RBI singles by Ray Kruml and Jahdiel Santamaria putting the exclamation point on the blowout win.

Andy Shive came in and fanned two of three to finish off a game which took nearly five hours due to the rain (3:08 overall).

The Bombers (24-15) lead the McNamara Division by four games over Hudson Valley (20-19) with Aberdeen trailing by five and Brooklyn six out with tonight’s series finale on tap. They’re 13-6 at home compared to 11-9 on the road.

Former Bomber Updates:

1.3B Mitch Hilligoss has struggled in his first season for Tampa hitting .244 with a homer, 17 doubles and 28 RBI’s along with 12 steals in 91 games for the High-A affiliate. Once rumored to be in a potential deal for Johan Santana, the 23 year-old Windsor, Illinois native who the Yankees took in the 2006 sixth round hasn’t been able to follow up an impressive second season in Charleston which included a South Atlantic record 38-game hit streak. There’s still five weeks left in the Florida State League season for him to finish strong.

2.Seth Fortenberry has also had a rough go of it going from Charleston to Tampa. The former S.I. Yankee star who teamed with Hilligoss to help them repeat two summers ago has gotten into 86 games and is hitting .242 with seven homers, nine doubles, seven triples and 22 RBI’s while swiping eight bases. Despite that, his .348 OBP isn’t bad and he has hit better in July (.282) than in prior months. The 24 year-old former Baylor star who the Yanks grabbed in Rd. 11 in 2006 can still finish with decent numbers if he puts it together.

3.George Kontos nearly was included in the six-player trade with the Pirates this past weekend but he and teammate Phil Coke wound up staying in Trenton. Apparently, someone failed a physical which was why the deal was changed. We may never know who. The 23 year-old former Northwestern star who the Yanks tabbed in the fifth round in 2006 has struggled lately in for the Double-A affiliate suffering his 10th defeat of the season the other night allowing six earned in six frames while walking four and striking out seven. While the Bomber hero who K’d 11 in six scoreless to help S.I. repeat two years ago has more than a K-per-inning over the last 51-plus, he’s 1-6 during that span with over a 5.00 ERA. In 21 outings, he’s 3-10 with a 4.05 ERA including 110 K’s in 113 and a third.

4.Kevin Smith has fared better than his teammates in Tampa hitting .277 with four homers, 23 doubles and 45 knocked in including 127 total bases in 92 contests. The 24 year-old first baseman who also starred on the 2006 Staten Island championship team was selected by the Yankees in Rd.39 in 2006. He finished very strong last year for the River Dogs hitting .297 with eight dingers and 52 RBI’s in 83 games. He’s continued to perform respectably.

5.Jonathan Hovis has followed up a solid first two pro seasons in Staten Island and Charleston with an even better third one with Tampa. The 24 year-old out of North Carolina who the Yankees signed as a free agent on 7/3/06 has done a good job closing games for Tampa posting a 2-0 record with a 1.14 ERA and 10 saves in 21 games. In 23 and a third, he’s allowed 13 hits while walking only three and striking out 24 with opposing hitters batting .155 against. Last season, he saved 30 games for Charleston.

6.Colin Curtis has had mixed results in his second season with Trenton. In 101 games, the 23 year-old left fielder out of Arizona State who the Yanks took in Rd.4 in 2006 is batting .258 with five homers, 17 doubles, two triples and 51 RBI’s while stealing five bases and posting a .336 OBP (46 walks). The former S.I. Yankee 2006 center fielder has fared better than his initial stint last year where he hit .242 with three long balls and 15 RBI’s. With top prospect Austin Jackson playing center, Curtis has made the transition to left and will try to help the defending Eastern League champs repeat.

7.James Cooper is still adjusting to life in Double-A where he’s hitting just .205 with two doubles and 10 RBI’s in 83 at bats since getting promoted from Tampa after batting .311 with a homer and 22 RBI’s in 66 games. The 24 year-old Los Angeles native who’s in his fourth pro season after the Yanks took him in the 2005 ninth round has battled back from leg injuries to get his chance. He was a member of the 2005 Staten Island championship team.

8.Justin Snyder has continued to progress well following an impressive first pro season which included Penn League AS honors by hitting .293 with 34 extra base hits including 26 two-baggers and three triples while knocking in 46 and totaling 159 bases with Charleston. The scrappy 22 year-old out of the University of San Diego who the Yanks grabbed in Rd.21 last year continues to get on-base drawing 42 walks along with a .361 OBP with a slugging of .416 in 98 games. He’s also a perfect 5-for-5 in stolen base attempts. Last season, he set new club records for Staten Island in average (.335) and hits (87) while totaling 26 extra base hits, 68 runs and a gaudy .459 OBP (58 BB) out of the leadoff spot. He batted first some this summer but lately has been moved to the middle of the River Dogs order.

9.Wilkins De La Rosa has successfully converted from right field to an effective left handed pitcher for Charleston. After struggling mightily at the plate in 2006 for the Bombers, the 23 year-old Santo Domingo native who the Yankees signed on 11/15/01 became a pitcher last year going 1-0 with a 2.63 ERA in 12 games for the Gulf Coast Yankees fanning 32 in 24 frames. This summer, he’s risen up the charts posting a 6-3 mark with a 2.32 ERA in 27 games. After starting the year as a reliever, De La Rosa is now starting games and faring well. In his last five starts, he’s gone into the sixth allowing two runs-or-less while striking out 34. Overall in 81.1 IP, he’s permitted 55 hits with only two long balls while walking 35 and whiffing 102 with opposing batters hitting only .192 against.

We’ll have more updates on former Staten Island Yanks later.