Justin Bestler fires a 2-hit shutout to propel LI Nor’Easters to the 2021 Blue Chip Collegiate League Championship
Final: Nor’Easters 1, Astros 0 pic.twitter.com/DWxHU9BhUf
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 9, 2021
If you stopped to take a bathroom break, there’s a good chance you missed a big portion of this one. Southpaw Justin Bestler was magnificent and efficient while firing a two-hit complete game shutout over the LI Astros in a 1-0 victory for the LI Nor’Easters.
The game was completed in an incomprehensible 1 hour, 15 minutes – roughly the same time it took for the Indians and Yankees to complete three innings during the ALDS last October. Nobody was complaining about the pace of this game, as it moved along swiftly throughout with both Bestler and his counterpart, Nick Carita, dealing.
The only real run-scoring threats in this game all occurred early on before the pitchers started dicing up the offenses.
Pavlos Papoutsakis (Division 2020) led off the top of the second with a well-struck double to left center field. He advanced to third on a ground ball to first by the next batter, Ryan Baumann (Bellport 2018). James May was the following batter, he hit a fly ball to left that Papoutsakis misjudged and thought would be a hit. By the time he realized the left fielder, Jesse Cooper-Leary, had a read on it, he jogged back to third and was unable to tag up. Although it was a mistake, there was no reason to believe it was going to be the difference in the game. The next batter, Vin Napolitano ripped a liner to left. This one was a much tougher play, but once against Cooper-Leary made the play. It was a pivotal moment in the game as the runner was stranded at third and the Nor’Easters got a huge boost of confidence.
In the bottom of the second, they got a one-out double by Hunter Goldstein (misplayed by the left fielder), but he was stranded in scoring position as well when Carita got ground outs of Will Bompy and Victor Denicola.
Bestler went back out for the third, and he went into the ultimate cruise control. He struck out one, got a line out to short and a ground out to third. He went on to retire 16 consecutive batters – two of those were line drive shots right back to the mound that he somehow caught while in self-defense mode.
In the bottom of the third, Lawrence Lubchuck was hit on the hand with a pitch to start off the infield. He advanced to second on a balk and third on an infield single by Marcello Arrigo. The following batter, Ty Orologio grounded one to second that had a shot to be a double-play but he hustled down the line and beat it out and it allowed Lubchuck to score the first run of the game.
And that was it. Carita was outstanding as well. He worked around a bunt single in the bottom of the fourth and an infield single in the fifth. In the sixth, Jose Silva crushed one to right and it appeared that it had a shot off the bat but it hit off the wall and the Astros executed a perfect relay to gun him down attempting to stretch into a triple. Carita retired the next batter to end the inning.
In the seventh, Bestler attacked. He struck out the first batter and induced a ground out to third for the second out. With two outs, Easy Goita – who had great at bats all day – worked a walk on a long at bat to extend the game. The next batter, Patrick Dalton reached on an error by the first baseman – a simple drop on a routine throw from across the diamond. This gave the Astros some life as they had the potential tying run in scoring position and winning run on first. It brought up three-hitter Aaron Klug, but Bestler was able to get the best of him – inducing a weak fly ball to center field to end the game and allow the Nor’Easters to capture the title.
Bestler was named co-playoff MVP along with Neftali Parache
