Oneonta exceeded its totals for hits and runs from the past three games combined, but four double plays and an 0-for-5 showing with runners in scoring position Thursday sent the Tigers to their sixth straight New York-Penn League loss.
The Tigers opened a nine-game homestand with a 4-3 loss to the Brooklyn Cyclones before an announced crowd of 1,289 at Damaschke Field.
Staten Island swept Oneonta earlier this week, holding the visiting Tigers to two runs on nine hits in their three-game series. The Tigers finished with 10 hits Thursday, but their ninth-inning rally fell short.
Oneonta has scored nine runs during a six-game slide that has all but ended the chances of the Tigers qualifying for the postseason.
With 11 games left, second-place Oneonta (33-31) trails Lowell (38-27) _ a 3-2 winner over visiting Hudson Valley on Thursday _ by 4 1/2 games in the Stedler Division. The Tigers also trail Staten Island (38-27) by 4 1/2 games in the wild-card standings.
That means any combination of Oneonta losses and Lowell wins that adds up to seven will eliminate the Tigers from the chase for the Stedler Division title. The same will hold true for the wild-card race should Staten Island's wins and Oneonta's losses hit seven.
The Tigers last qualified for the NY-Penn playoffs in 2007. That season, they dropped their best-of-three, first-round series against Auburn, two games to one.
The O-Tigers have not won a NY-Penn championship since they became affiliated with Detroit in 1999.
Oneonta and Brooklyn play the middle game of their three-game series at 7:05 tonight at Damaschke Field.
On Thursday, Tigers starter Jose Siso allowed one run on six hits in six strong innings. He struck out six and walked two.
McNamara Division leader Brooklyn (42-24) took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning.
Luis Rivera singled to left with two out and went to second on a wild pitch. After Alex Gregory walked, Sam Honeck's single to right scored Rivera.
Oneonta tied it in the sixth with an unearned run off winning pitcher Chris Hilliard (1-0).
Jamie Johnson, who grounded into two double plays, singled to center to lead off. Michael Rockett then put runners on first and second with a sacrifice bunt as he reached base via a fielder's choice.
Hilliard got Rawley Bishop to fly out to left before Alexis Espinoza grounded to shortstop Robbie Shields, who flipped to second baseman Jordany Valdespin to force out Rockett at second. Valdespin followed with a wild throw to first, allowing Johnson to score.
Valdespin atoned for his error with a two-run homer off losing pitcher Wade Kapteyn (1-4) in the seventh.
Kapteyn walked John Servido to start the inning. He went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Juan Centeno and scored on Valdespin's first homer of the season, a shot to right that made it 3-1.
The Tigers answered with a run in the bottom of the inning, when Wade Gaynor led off with his third homer of the season. He sent a pitch from Manuel Olivares over the left-field fence.
Carmelo Jaime and Christopher Sedon followed with back-to-back, one-out singles, but Johnson grounded into the last of four double plays turned by the Cyclones.
Valdespin manufactured a run in the ninth off Cory Hamilton. He reached on a one-out, infield single to first, then stole second and went to third on a passed ball by Eric Roof.
After Hamilton struck out Robbie Shields, Richard Lucas walked to put runners at the corners. Rivera followed with a single to center that scored Valdespin for a 4-2 Brooklyn lead.
Michael Powers earned his 16th save of the season in the ninth. He got John Murrian to fly to left and struck out Gaynor.
Roof then singled to right and was replaced by pinch-runner Jimmy Gulliver, who scored when Jaime doubled to right to make it 4-3.
Powers struck out Sedon to end it.
Cyclones 4, O-Tigers 3
{"Sports agate MLB teams"/}brooklynONEONTA
{"Sports agate MLB batting"/}abrhbiabrhbi
{"Sports agate body text"/}Valdespn 2b4222Johnson cf4110
Shields ss4000Rockett lf3000
Lucas 3b4010Bishop 1b4000
Rivera rf4121Espinoza rf3010
Gregory lf3010Murrian dh4000
Honeck 1B3011Gaynor 3b4121
Hnriquez dh4000Roof c3020
Servidio cf3110Gulliver pr0100
Centeno c3010Jaime ss4020
Shields ss2000Sedon 2b4020
Totals34494Totals333101
{"Sports agate MLB 9inning"/}Brooklyn000100201""4
Oneonta000001101""3
E""Valdespin (3), Hess (1) DP""Brooklyn 4, Oneonta 0. LOB""Brooklyn 10, Oneonta . 2B""Lucas (5), Servidio (6), Jaime (5). 3B""Gregory (2). HR""Valdespin (1), Gaynor (3). S""Valdespin, Centeno, Honeck, Rockett. CS""Centeno (1, Roof).
{"Sports agate body text"/}BrooklynIPHRERBBSO
Hilliard (W, 1-0)651022
Olivares (H, 2)131100
Ortega H, 2)100000
Goldberg (H, 2)100001
Powers (S, 16)121102
{"Sports agate MLB pitching"/}Oneonta
{"Sports agate body text"/}Siso 661126
Kapteyn (L, 1-4)112210
Hess 100010
Hamilton121111
WP""Siso. PB_ Roof 2. HBP""Gregory (Hess). Umpires""Home,Joe Muenzer; Field, Thomas Newsom. T""2:36. A""1,289.
