Mount Pleasant Magazine March/April 2013

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Photo courtesy of Lehigh Valley IronPigs/Digital Photographic Imaging.
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in the Rule 5 draft, you know that
team has some interest in you.”
Cisco, who will turn 26 in May,
grew up in a baseball family. His
grandfather, Galen Cisco, pitched in
the majors for the Mets, Red Sox and
Royals and later served as a pitch-
ing coach for the Phils. His father
and uncle, Jeff and Galen Jr., were
minor league players. Mike’s younger
brother, Drew, is in the Cincinnati
Reds organization.
After stellar baseball careers at
Wando High School and the Uni-
versity of South Carolina, Cisco
was taken by the Phillies in the
36th round of the amateur draft. A
starting pitcher in high school and
college and for the first four years of
his professional career, he was moved
to the bullpen in 2011. He produced
eye-popping numbers in the pen
the past two years, posting 13 wins
against only three losses, six saves
and a miniscule 1.70 earned run
average while splitting time between
AA Reading and AAA Lehigh Valley.
Though he was apprehensive at
first, Cisco obviously thrived in his
new role.
“I didn’t know what to expect, but
I adapted and now I love it,” he said.
“As a starter, if you have a good out-
ing, those four days in between starts
fly by. But if you have a bad outing,
those four days really drag. You want
to get back on the mound as soon as
you can.”
He added that he enjoys working
out of the bullpen so much that he
would relish the possibility of some-
day being a closer, a job that requires
a short memory, nerves of steel and
never-ending confidence.
“I like the adrenaline and the
pressure of pitching late in a game,”
he commented. “I want to have the
ball when the game is on the line.
Think of me as a competitor with a
bulldog mentality.”
Cisco will go to Spring Train-
By the NumBers
Mike Cisco’s Minor League Career
Year Team LeveL W L era
2008 Williamsport Short Season 1 0 1.86
2008 Lakewood Low A 2 1 0.51
2009 Clearwater High A 7 3 3.31
2009 Reading AA 2 4 4.58
2010 Clearwater High A 0 0 1.93
2010 Reading AA 4 11 4.73
2010 Lehigh Valley AAA 0 0 7.11
2011 Reading AA 8 0 1.59
2012 Reading AA 3 3 1.21
2012 Lehigh Valley AAA 2 0 2.67