Drive's Stankiewicz steers straight course

Teddy Stankiewicz's experiences in baseball have almost been an extension of the cliches of the game itself -- wins and losses, highs and lows, triumphs and upsets.

In 2012, he achieved his lifetime goal of getting drafted out of Texas's Fort Worth Christian High School, but he thought the Mets' offer was too far below the suggested $680,000 for the 75th overall pick, so he went to college.

One year later, the Red Sox took him 30 picks earlier after a season of ball at Seminole State Junior College. While they were initially willing to pay the $1.1 million signing bonus associated with the pick, the value came down by almost $200,000 when a routine medical exam uncovered he had been born without a right pectoral muscle.

The 20-year-old doesn't know how the next chapters of his career will play out, but right now he can look back on the past few years and be happy with his progress to date. Against that backdrop, Wednesday's performance might be the high point of his pro career.

Stankiewicz (5-4) allowed two hits over a career-best seven scoreless innings in the Class A Greenville Drive's 6-3 win over the Charleston RiverDogs.

"The game went well. I felt like I pounded the zone and made sure that I could get quick outs, which I did," Boston's No. 17 prospect said. "The pitch count was very good through seven innings and I'm happy I got through it.

"This is definitely my No. 1 start. Overall, I thought I dominated."

The 6-foot-4 right-hander struck out six batters and did not issue any walks in lowering his ERA to 3.71. He threw 68 of 93 pitches for strikes and got seven flyouts and six groundouts.

Stankiewicz allowed a double to Michael O'Neill on the first pitch of the game and he yielded a two-out single to Dustin Fowler in the third before retiring the final 13 batters he faced.

"Good piece of hitting, a line drive, so congrats to him," he said of O'Neill's two-bagger. "He hit it well. The second hit was also a good piece of hitting. It was a changeup low and outside and he hit it through the hole between first and second base."

It provided a nice bounceback effort for the 20-year-old, who had allowed three or more runs in six of his eight previous starts entering Wednesday. Last time out, he surrendered a season-high five hits on nine hits over five innings in a loss to Rome on Friday.

"Just staying back longer lets my arm get through instead of dragging," Stankiewicz said. "I have to make sure I keep my body going toward the plate instead of spinning off to the left. If I don't do that, the ball goes any way it pleases. If I stay in line, I'm as good as gold."

Stankiewicz posted a 2.29 ERA with 15 strikeouts and two walks in 19 2/3 innings over nine starts with short-season Lowell last summer.

This year, however, the learning curve has been a little steeper. He had a 4-4 mark and a 4.18 ERA with 38 whiffs and 18 free passes entering Wednesday. After posting zeros in two of his first three South Atlantic League starts, he has given up three or more runs in six of his past eight starts.

Unfazed by not being the best player on the field for maybe the first time in his career, he's using the opportunities to learn and grow. While he had limited control over when he was drafted -- or by whom -- he knows his future is back in his hands.

"It was an OK decision," Stankiewicz said about leaving around a half-million dollars on the table as an 18-year-old. "Actually, I quite enjoyed my year at JuCo and I had the best coach in the world. It was nice to go there and get better for a year.

"The better the player, the greater the challenge, and I love challenges. Without being the best, there are things you can learn from people who are better than you. You have to take that as an opportunity to learn more stuff and have them help you on things you need help with. It's a learning experience."