By Dylan Butler
Bernie Estevez enjoys the pressure. As the leadoff batter, the Cardozo sophomore knows he is the fire starter, the guy who is instrumental in starting a rally. And against Queens A-III rival Bayside last Thursday, the Judges’ formula for success was a simple one — Cardozo scores when Estevez gets on base.
“I personally like [leading off]. I have a lot of confidence in myself,” Estevez said. “I just try and help my team win.”
Estevez found a variety of ways to help his team win in his four at-bats in Cardozo’s 16-0 romp over the Commodores. He singled to center, walked, doubled to left field and he reached on an error. And it was no surprise that Cardozo scored nine runs in three of the four innings Estevez got on base.
“He’s been excellent out of the first spot, he makes things happen,” Cardozo coach Pete Douglas said of Estevez. “He waits for his pitch, he has a combination of being able to walk, hit and run. He has great instincts.”
Cardozo sophomore hurler Danny Rosenbluth also appreciated Estevez’s ability to manufacture runs. Before he even threw one pitch, he had a 1-0 lead that ballooned to 4-0 after three innings.
“He’s been really stroking the ball nicely,” Rosenbluth said. “He’s a great leadoff batter. He deserves to be there.”
Estevez got things started with a single up the middle in the top of the first inning. Landon Veissy followed with a bloop single to right field. Nabil Nadim briefly bobbled the ball, allowing Estevez to reach third. Wisely, Veissy got caught in a rundown between first and second and Estevez took advantage and snuck home to put Cardozo (15-4, 9-2) ahead, 1-0.
Unfortunately for Bayside (8-7-1, 6-4), the team’s defense in the first inning would be a sign of things to come.
In the top of the third, Estevez received a one-out pass and reached second on Roger Mischel’s wild pitch — the first of three in the inning. Commodores catcher Chaim Malka came up firing, but overthrew second as Estevez reached third. On Veissy’s sac fly, Cardozo led 2-0.
Brian Rosen then reached on an infield error and advanced to second on another wild pitch. Mike Mastrogiovanni drove Rosen home on a single to right field. He stole second base and scored from second on another wild pitch, as Malka lost the ball in the high grass behind the plate.
“It’s just inexperience on our part,” said Bayside coach Pat Torney. “We started three seniors, one junior and five sophomores. They have to go through a learning experience, but unfortunately, it’s trial by fire.”
Meanwhile, Rosenbluth was chugging along nicely. Combining a strong breaking pitch with a deceivingly quick fastball, he allowed just two hits — one in the infield — while striking out 11 in the complete-game shutout.
With so much talk about Francis Lewis’ Jonathan Lewis and Mischel on Bayside in Queens A-III, the undefeated Rosenbluth has quietly become one of the gems in the league.
“With him on the mound we beat [defending PSAL champions] Monroe and he allowed one earned run,” Douglas said. “He also came up big against Lewis, beating [Jonathan Lewis] 3-2. And again today, he did exactly what we expected him to do. He has great talent, poise and determination. He’s a sophomore who plays like a senior.”
Cardozo blew the game open in the final two innings, scoring 12 more runs. The win gave the Judges sole possession of first place and put them in the driver’s seat to clinch their 11th straight league crown.
And the win over their neighborhood rivals was also a measure of revenge for the Judges, who fell to Bayside two weeks ago for the first time in seven years. Mischel followed with stinging comments about the Judges in an article printed days before last Thursday’s game.
“I thought the whole situation was funny,” Rosenbluth said. “After what happened in the last game and with what Roger said in the paper, we were determined to show the last game was a fluke. We’re the better team all-around.”
After entering the week in a first place tie with Cardozo, Bayside fell to third place and was reeling after back-to-back league losses by a combined score of 28-0.
“It sounds like a football score,” said Torney, whose Commodores lost to Francis Lewis 12-0 May 1. “It doesn’t matter what the defense does when you put no runs on the scoreboard, it’s difficult.”
August Martin 10, Jamaica 0. Brandon Plair tossed a two-hitter with eight strikeouts and Luis Santiago was 2-for-3 with three RBIs for Martin (10-4, 8-3 Queens B-I). First-place Jamaica fell to 9-2 in the division.
Bowne 7, Bryant 1. Edison Alba allowed just one hit and fanned six and Wilson St. Hillaire went 2-for-4 with an RBI for the Wildcats (7-4 Queens A-II).
Aviation 11, Newtown 7. The Flyers scored six runs in the sixth inning to break a 5-5 tie. Fadul Bambino led the way for Aviation (13-3, 8-3 Queens A-II) going 2-for-4 with a double.
Grand Street Campus 12, John Adams 9. David Rodriguez struck out seven in a complete-game win for Grand Street Campus (20-4-1, 7-2-1 Queens A-I). Rafael Caba walked in the top of the seventh and eventually stole home for the winning run and Jonathan Rodriguez was 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
Aviation 8, Cleveland 3. Jenndy Mena jacked a two-run homer and Roberto Cornejo hurled a five-hitter, fanning seven for Aviation.
Franklin K. Lane 11, Richmond Hill 3. Issac Borrero went 4-for-5 with an RBI and pitched a complete game with five strikeouts for his first win. Ramon Pichardo went 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored and two RBIs for Lane (7-10, 1-9 Queens A-I).
Francis Lewis 5, Edison 0. Jonathan Lewis tossed the Patriots’ second no-hitter of the week, striking out 14 of the final 18 batters he faced. Chang Ye Chiang had two doubles and two RBIs for Lewis (14-5, 8-3 Queens A-III).
Newtown 6, LIC 0. Miguel Maria fanned nine in a complete-game two-hitter and Edwin Tolentino went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored for Newtown (9-6-1, 7-3 Queens A-II).
Aviation 4, Cleveland 0. Fadul Bambino scattered four hits with nine strikeouts and Jenndy Mena went 2-for-3 for the Flyers.
Springfield Gardens 7, Campus Magnet 3. Alan Hernandez fanned 14 and allowed just four hits while Bryce Carr went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and three RBIs for the Golden Eagles (5-5 Queens B-I).
Arts & Business 6, Renaissance 4. Jose Medina was the hero, launching a game-winning three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth for the Bulls (2-11, 2-9 Queens B-II). Eddie Eusebio had six strikeouts for Arts & Business.
Jamaica 14, Far Rockaway 2. Miguel Ortiz had 10 strikeouts and Omar Birchwood went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs for the Beavers.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
