By Michael Letendre
How close did the Bristol American Legion Baseball senior schedule follow the original slate of games?
With rain and the usual tomfoolery that the summer brings, things don’t always go according to plan.
But at least over its first twenty days or so to start the campaign, Bristol got most of its games in.
Here’s a quick look at the summer that was for the Bristol American Legion Baseball squad and the games that weren’t – starting in the month of June:
Thursday, June 10: Bristol did indeed go to West Hartford as Albert Molina (6 IP, 6 hits, no decision) pitched his only game the squad in a 4-3 loss from Hall high school. Austin Brown and Adam Caron had two hits apiece over the losing effort.
Friday, June 11: South Windsor came to Muzzy Field for a non-zone challenge, falling to Post 2 by a 7-1 final. Matt Beaucar earned his first win behind a five inning, 63-pitch effort. Ryan Fradette added a big double to pace the victors.
Saturday, June 12: The original schedule did not have Wallingford coming to Bristol for an exhibition showdown. In this one, Roberto Cruz (7-0) threw a two-hit shutout as the locals were 1-0 winners. Jack Kozikowski tallied the game-winning RBI via an infield hit.
Sunday, June 13: The contest against Berlin from Muzzy Field was postponed. It was weird to see Berlin 0-9 after nine games (Post 2 was 8-4 over that same period) this year. But as Bristol coach Jerry LaPenta knew, that winless streak would not last.
Tuesday, June 15: With just about every player out of position, Bristol fell at Avon 10-1 in an error filled affair. Dylan Woodsome threw a strong 3.1 innings before things fell apart. Brown led the charge with two hits and a sacrifice bunt.
Thursday, June 17: Andrew Lozier had a strong game from the hill as Bristol spun Meriden by a 6-3 final from Legion Field. Beaucar saved the game while Kozikowski scooped up two singles, two RBI, two stolen bases and a walk.
Saturday, June 19: In a game that ultimately cost Post 2 a shot at the Regional Qualifier, Bristol fell at home to Naugatuck by a 4-2 final. Mike Lorenzetti (4.2 IP) drew a tough loss. He fanned eight while Kozikowski smacked out a late RBI single.
Sunday, June 20: After scoring three runs in the first inning, Newington made a huge comeback to tie the contest at 3-3 though seven frames. Bristol scored two runs in the top of the eighth and Cruz needed just 11 pitches to win the contest as Post 2 won 5-3 from Legends Field. It was the first of five straight victories for Bristol.
Thursday, June 24: After a three-day layoff, Lozier threw a two-hit, six-inning gem as the chucker helped to shutout Simsbury 10-0 in a mercy ruled game from Memorial Field. Post 84 did not win a game this summer. Incredible…
Saturday, June 26: When three players came for the Southington American Legion Baseball tryout, the program decided to fold. That meant Post 2 would be three games short in 2021 as Zone 1 played every opponent three times this year. With Berlin falling flat out of the gate, Simsbury winless, and Southington not fielding a team, it was a bizarre year for Zone 1.
Sunday, June 27: Lorenzetti pitched a strong game against West Hartford in Bristol but Alex Canzellarini earned the win on just five pitches as Post 2 was a 4-3 winner – slitting the season series at 1-1. Bristol notched four runs in the seventh to steal the game. Fradette’s two-RBI single sealed the victory for the locals.
Tuesday, June 29: It was Cruz again as Bristol shutout Berlin 6-0 in a contest from Sage Park in Berlin. Cruz allowed just five hits over his complete game, 101-pitch effort. Kozikowski had two hits and three RBI while Lozier popped out a three-base hit to lead Bristol. Tyler Martin and Caron (two hits apiece) zipped up half of Post 2’s eight total hits that night.
Wednesday, June 30: Beaucar was absolutely tremendous against Avon from Muzzy Field, wrapping up a complete game, four hit gem against the future state champs as Post 2 was a 3-1 winner. Avon committed five errors that night.
And that’s a wrap from June as Post 2 played most of it scheduled games with little interruption.
The schedule flowed nicely with just the Berlin postponement, the add-in of Wallingford and the cancellation of the Southington game.
Next week, we’ll look at the month of July-August and how Bristol – due to the weather – did not have a chance in following the schedule.
