Cyclones embrace challenges of hitting at Maimonides Park, look forward to Coney Island summer

Carson Benge isn’t changing his approach at the plate, despite playing in one of Minor League Baseball’s toughest early-season hitting environments.

The New York Mets’ number three prospect and Brooklyn Cyclones outfielder is in his first season with the Cyclones, the Mets’ high A affiliate of the South Atlantic League. Through eight games and 27 plate appearances in the young 2025 season, Benge is hitting .296 with eight hits and three runs batted in. He is part of the majority of Cyclones players yet to hit a home run this season.

The Cyclones play their home games at Maimonides Park on Coney Island. This stadium is notorious for its early-season weather. The winds blowing in off the water make it difficult for hitters — particularly left-handed power hitters — to drive the ball in the air.

The club maintains a development-first approach, focused on crafting the future sluggers of Major League Baseball. Their list of successful Mets projects includes Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Alvarez.

“You’re not going up there looking for home runs,” said Benge. You’re going up there looking for low-line drives, something you can hit hard. So I feel like that in my approach has stayed the exact same. If I get something up a little bit and it gets caught at 105, I’m completely okay with that.”

Process over results

The Cyclones began their season with a nine-game homestand. They’ve played just two road games in 2025, so it’s too early to determine the full impact of the spring weather at their home park. Brooklyn ranks fourth in the South Atlantic League in both runs scored (58) and home runs (nine).

But it’s worth noting that the team’s current home run leader, catcher Chris Suero, is a right-handed batter. Suero has five home runs this season, and combined with third baseman Jacob Reimer’s one home run, the Cyclones’ right-handed bats have hit six of the club’s nine home runs thus far. Of Brooklyn’s left-handed bats, center fielder Eli Serrano III and shortstop Boston Baro — the Mets’ 14th-ranked prospect — have combined for three home runs.

At Maimonides Park in Coney Island, chilly ocean winds and early spring air make it one of the toughest ballparks for hitters in Minor League Baseball.Photo by Erica Price

Manager Gilbert Gómez, speaking after the Cyclones’ 8–1 afternoon home win against the Hudson Valley Renegades on Sunday, said that the winds so far haven’t been too tough. Some games, he said, the wind blows in. Other days, like Sunday, it blows out. Hudson Valley’s Jose Colmenares scored his club’s only run of the game on an opposite-field solo home run to right field.

“The biggest thing for us is making sure that we stick to our process,” said Gómez. “Swinging the right pitches, hitting the ball hard, regardless of the outcome. We do have good metrics that kind of enhance the expected stuff. So even if the wind is blowing in and the ball doesn’t go out or it gets caught, we value process over results, so we’re trying to preach that into our guys.

“It is a pitchers’ ballpark. There’s no secret about it. But I feel like the more that we can put that out of their minds and just focus on hitting the ball hard regardless of the outcome, I think we should be in a good spot.”

The Cyclones’ team .441 slugging percentage on the road is slightly higher than their .409 slugging percentage at home. The club’s batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage are all currently higher at home than they are on the road. It’s likely that these will balance out or tilt in the road games’ favor as the squad continues on their road trip, which takes them through series against the Aberdeen IronBirds and the Jersey Shore BlueClaws over the next couple of weeks.

“It’s super hard to hit in this field,” said catcher Ronald Hernandez, who is a switch-hitter. “But we don’t think about it because we make a lot of preparation during the practice, and we try to bring our best effort every time. It’s hard when you hit the ball in the air and the winds kind of treat you.”

‘It’s a show’

The peak of summer baseball on Coney Island comes after Memorial Day, when the warmer weather and larger crowds roll in off the boardwalk and Luna Park. Maimonides Park has previously been named Minor League Baseball’s most fun stadium. Its atmosphere has been described as playing baseball at a carnival.

“It’s a show,” said Gómez. “It’s a fun environment to play in. The roller coaster behind and you got all those lights popping up at night, and you got good fans, good crowd when it gets warm. Last year, it was fun. I’m assuming that this year is gonna be the same, but definitely a good place to be in, a good place to play baseball.”

The Brooklyn Cyclones opened their 2025 season at Maimonides Park on April 4, starting strong with an 8–4 record to lead the South Atlantic League’s North Division.Photo by Erica Price

Benge, who is new to Brooklyn after being drafted by the Mets 19th overall last year, said that he’s enjoyed his time on Coney Island so far and that Maimonides Park had a “good minor league feel to it,” despite the small early-season crowds.

“I feel like with the few fans we’ve gotten here so far, they’ve been loud and really good,” said Benge. “So having 6,000 of them in our park would definitely be amazing. [It will] be fun to watch.”