By Michael Letendre

WEST HARTFORD – The Bristol American Legion Baseball team has a busy schedule with the July 4 holiday looming.

Post 2, entering Sunday at 3-3-1, will play six times this week – hoping to keep pace with the top squads in Zone 3. 

Zone 3 American division leader Ellington was in town on Sunday for a competitive tilt but later that day, Post 2 continued up its suspended contest against Northeast.

The game picked up in the top of the fourth inning with Post 2 trailing 7-0.

It’s another game Bristol used a reserve pitcher in – dictated by a busy week of Zone 3 play.

“The suspended game, it’s kind of the same thing,” said Bristol coach Jerry LaPenta about saving the squad’s pitching. “We’re down 7-0 going into the fourth. I’m not wasting an arm in that game. So, we’ll try to get the ‘W in the first game and in the suspended game, whatever happens, happens.”

Suspended games

After Bristol completes its game against Northeast, the locals still have two more suspended contests to finish.

After last Monday’s flood at the game in Torrington, Bristol – trailing 3-1 midway in the fourth – must complete that affair.

There is not a make-up date issued as of yet for the Torrington tilt while Post 2 is embattled in a 6-6 showdown against NCL which will be completed this coming Sunday.

That contest will start in the top of the 11th as Bristol chucker Jayden Churchill was on the mound before curfew stopped the game in its tracks at Muzzy Field back on June 8.

State Tournament positioning

The top five in programs in each zone division will qualify for state tournament play and Bristol is hanging around the qualifying mark.

“We have three wins,” said LaPenta. “If we can get to eight or nine wins, that should be enough to get us to the playoffs. And if we’re playing our best ball at the end, you know, we can go on a little run.”

While games have been spaced out this past week for Bristol, that huge clump of contests will test the Bristol bullpen.

And any complete game effort will be of great benefit if the likes of Maglio and Schenck can go the distance for Post 2.

But any games that Bristol is forced to dip into its bullpen for could lead to a long week on the diamond. 

“Pitching is going to be an issue when we get down to the end,” said LaPenta. “It is what it is.”

Churchill can throw some innings for Post 2 along with Colvin and Roberge out of the pen.

Big starts from Caleb Molinsky will help out tremendously as will stints by Connor Cyr, Colvin, Caleb Simard, Gabe White and anyone else who can chuck a ball for Bristol.

And that includes Wolcott’s Josh Dunne who dusted off the cobwebs and got two big outs to help Bristol end the West Hartford game on Friday.

Small contributions will be of immense help from situation to situation. 

“Josh came in, the little lefty there, and he threw all right,” said LaPenta of Josh Dunn. “And there’s nothing worse than seeing a crafty lefty for three or four innings. You can’t do [much]. You pop up and roll over so [we hope] he can get his breaking ball going.”

“No one likes to go up against a soft-throwing lefty.”