The 11–10 Cyclones finally had their first off-day on Tuesday, July 8.

Not only was no game scheduled, but the team would really be off e_SEmD no workout, no travel, a true day off, one of only three in the season.

So what will the twentysomething matinee idols planning to do, inquiring minds wanted to know.

“A bunch of the guys are going to check out the city [Manhattan],” said Mike Lynn, a pitcher from South Carolina who has been to “the city” only once in his 23 years. “We’ll take the subway, then just walk around and play it by ear.

“And I’m going to get some new clothes. I haven’t been able to do laundry yet. We have to wear a collared shirt every day, but we’re at the field 12 hours every day, so it’s kind of hard to do laundry. And when we get home at night, we’re too tired, so I’ll be getting a lot of collared shirts, maybe one for each game,” he said, laughing.

Third-baseman Zach Lutz also planned to head to Manhattan.

“My parents will be coming in from Pennsylvania, and we’ll be going into the city.”

Ike Davis is no stranger to New York — his dad, Ron Davis, pitched for the Yankees — but he planned to join his mates in the big town.

“I just want to clear my head, get away from baseball for a day and then come back the next day ready to play,” he said.

But not all the Cyclones said they would be sight-seeing.

“I’ll just relax,” said Roy Merritt, the skinny pitcher who suggested that he was tired of ballpark food. “I just want to make sure I get something good to eat.”

But food wasn’t on the mind of another Cyclones’ pitcher — Yury Santana. What motivates Santana is sleep and watching baseball.

“We have a long road trip on Wednesday [407 miles to upstate Jamestown], and they are a good team, so I want to be rested,” said Santana, a converted infielder who leads the league in saves with six. “I’ll also watch the Mets’ game.”

Maybe Santana has the right idea about resting. The Cyclones were slated to leave Brooklyn early on July 9, arrive in Jamestown that afternoon, and play a ball game that night.

At which point the day off will seem a distant memory.

©2008 The Brooklyn Paper