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On Wednesday morning, Tim Stronach may not have seemed the most likely candidate to flirt with a perfect game. He was lugging around a hefty 6.59 ERA, and opponents were tagging him for a .367 batting average.
Well, surprise.
In an early afternoon game, Stronach turned in a masterful performance for his St. Lucie Mets against the Palm Beach Cardinals at Roger Dean Stadium. He rolled through six perfect innings and carried a no-hitter into the ninth, earning the win in St. Lucie's 10-0 rout of Palm Beach.
"I sort of surprised myself today," Stronach (1-1) admitted.
The 23-year-old righty signed with the Mets after being selected in the 22nd round of the 2006 Draft and posted a 4.59 ERA over his first three years as a pro. He began the 2009 campaign in extended spring training with rotator cuff tendinitis and didn't make his first Florida State League appearance until mid-June.
The rotator cuff, Stronach said, "feels fine now. It felt great today."
His outings this season have been brief, and Wednesday marked only his second start this year. In his first, he took a loss after allowing three runs on eight hits over a season-high 3 2/3 innings against the Tampa Yankees on June 19.
Stronach, who's been sharpening his sinker since coming to the Mets organization, got 14 ground-ball outs in Wednesday's game.
"I noticed they were swinging early [in counts], so I just tried to throw the sinker in there," Stronach said, "I threw [the sinker] more than the four-seamer."
Palm Beach's Adron Chambers was hit by a pitch in the first at-bat of the seventh to become the first Cardinals baserunner.
"I was much more frustrated than nervous," Stronach said of hitting Chambers. "It just nicked his sleeve. He was hanging out over the plate a little and the pitch didn't get down enough. That was a frustrating way to see the perfect game end."
But Stronach went back to the sinker and induced a grounder off the bat of Charles Cutler, the next hitter. All three batters Stronach faced in the eighth also grounded out.
The no-hitter continued when Thomas Pham hit a fly ball to right for the first out of the ninth, but Oliver Marmol followed with a double to left. Chambers worked a walk, and Stronach's day was done. He was relieved by Edgar Ramirez, who got the next two batters in the air.
"I was a little tired [after the double], but the no-hitter being gone was on my mind. I was overthrowing to [Chambers]," said Stronach. "I didn't get the end of the no-hitter out of the back of my mind."
Even when Stronach was cruising, though, there was one batter in the Cardinals lineup who added some pressure. Troy Glaus, who's recovering from shoulder surgery, is rehabbing with Palm Beach.
"I was nervous about facing Troy Glaus," said Stronach. "But he got himself out. He popped up three times."
Stronach had no other problems with nerves. Although he hadn't thrown four full innings in a game this season, he wasn't worried about his stamina wearing down.
"I felt strong all day. I've been starting all my life. I never thought once today that I wasn't going to back out there. I felt great today, and my body felt great. The fielders were playing great behind me."
As solid as he looked throughout the start, not every aspect of Stronach's game was working for him Wednesday.
"I didn't have too many two-strike counts. My slider wasn't really getting over the plate, and they weren't chasing it. Sometimes you can't get that strikeout pitch to work, and you've got to find a way to get outs without it."
He struck out just one batter in his outing, but he clearly made the adjustment he was seeking.
Wednesday's game was "by far," the best of his professional career, Stronach said. "I didn't really expect to be a part of something like this."
And he wasn't the only Mets pitching prospect to shine in a Wednesday matinee -- Savannah Sand Gnats hurler Jeurys Familia took a perfect game into the sixth inning against the Kannapolis Intimidators before surrendering a run on a walk and a hit in the Class A South Atlantic League. Familia (7-6) recorded the win in the Sand Gnats' 3-1 victory.
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