By Michael Letendre
TORRINGTON – There are a couple different approaches that Connecticut American Legion Baseball teams take when the regular season finish line is in sight.
Programs like Bristol are all in, making a big playoff push and finishing the year with zest.
Some other teams, well, are struggling to get to the finish line – just hoping to be part of the postseason mix
Take the Bristol’s 19U showdown against Torrington on Tuesday for example.
That Sone 3 bout was a make-up game, a contest that Bristol was trailing in 3-1- a game Post 2 could have easily let slip away as the game recommenced in the bottom of the fourth.
Bristol came out in the fifth inning firing, putting multiple runners on base that set the tone and then dropped three runs in the sixth and four more in the seventh to square up an impressive 8-3 win – earning victory No. 10 in the process.
“On the ride over, I said to [assistant coach] Rick [Lemke], ‘if we get a win out of here somehow, we really snatched victory out of the jaws of defeat,’” said LaPenta of the Torrington trip. “To come back [here] after a month or two weeks, and try to pick up where you left off?”
During the sixth inning rally, Bristol’s EJ Sanchez had an amazing at-bat.
He went 1-for-2 against Torrington but it was an epic base-on-balls that led to three backbreaking runs.
Sanchez fended off pitch after pitch and with the bases loaded, Sanchez eventually earned the biggest walk of Bristol’s season to date, eventually leading to a 4-3 edge that Torrington never threatened.
“I thought EJ’s at-bat was the whole game,” said LaPenta. “It was the whole game. If he makes an out, there’s two outs with the bases loaded. We’re down 3-1 still. He fouled off three tough pitches and he took a tough pitch.”
That final pitch was close to the strike zone, but Sanchez’s keen eye saw it as a ball.
And he was right because the pitch ended up being about half a foot outside according to LaPenta.
That at-bat opened the floodgates offensively and with winning pitcher Caleb Molinsky throwing a four inning, one-hitter, that was a formula for success by Post 2.
It was the second straight contest that Bristol faced a very good pitcher, this time in the form of Joe Dipippo (11 hits, 83 pitches thrown).
But when he struggled, he wasn’t given a lifeline as Post 2 was extremely patient at the dish over the final two frames.
“That kid is a pretty good pitcher for them,” said LaPenta of Dipippo. “He just got in the stretch and struggled.”
Since the postponement against Bristol, Torrington has gone 3-9 overall but despite most of those setbacks, Post 38 is still in line for a playoff berth while Bristol (10-7-2) can finish the campaign with 11-12 wins and a possible home seed.
“What we talk about year is playing your best at the end,” said LaPenta. “That’s what we’re doing.”
To start Friday, Bristol was ranked 14th in the playoff seeding with a possible date against No. 19 Ridgefield in the cards.
Post 2 defeated Ridgefield last Sunday, 6-2.
But between then and now, anything is possible, as LaPenta has credited the players with this turnaround as they are hitting the ball, throwing well from the rubber and making all the plays in the field.
“With pitches, I’m making a few calls but it’s really them,” said LaPenta about the team. “You are really only as good as your players execute. You can be John Wooden but if your players don’t execute, [you don’t win].”
“I couldn’t be prouder of the group. They’re hanging in together.”
Northeast’s two games against Bristol
Weather permitting, and it rained in Bristol for most of the morning, starting in Tolland about mid-morning, Post 2 had two games against Northeast on Friday.
One game was a scheduled one while an 8-1 suspended contest was scheduled to get commence after the first seven-inning affair.
“We have a huge game against Northeast” on Friday said LaPenta. “They’re in last place. If we beat them, they’re probably done.”
Over the final weekend of the regular season, the standings will sort itself out when things are said and done.
As other squads lose, Post 2 continues to keep its current standing in Zone 3.
“The other good thing is all the teams right below us are all playing each other,” said LaPenta. “So somebody’s going to lose. Tri-County is playing South Windsor, Simsbury is going to play [those teams as well] so they are all going to play each other.”
