Globe iconLogin iconRecap iconSearch iconTickets icon

Cohoon tosses third straight shutout

Mets prospect ties SAL record, has not allowed a run in June
June 16, 2010
Hard work and preparation are paying off for Mark Cohoon and the rest of the Savannah Sand Gnats pitching staff.

Cohoon tied a South Atlantic League record with his third consecutive shutout Wednesday, tossing a four-hitter as Savannah routed the Rome Braves, 12-0.

After a rocky second inning in which allowed a leadoff single and walked a batter, the 22-year-old left-hander retired 12 straight Braves. Cory Harrilchak ended the streak with a single in the sixth and threatened to spoil Cohoon's shutout with a two-out double in the ninth. But Jordan Kreke grounded out to second base to end the game. Cohoon, the Mets' 12th-round pick in the 2008 Draft, said trusting his repertoire enabled him to induce 12 groundouts.

"I had my whole arsenal," he said. "When I got in tight spots, I just trusted my two-seam [fastball] and threw it over the plate for ground balls. I was able to throw all my pitches for strikes, and when I got ahead of the count I put guys away with my curveball."

Cohoon (7-1), who also throws a circle-change and a four-seam fastball, leads all Minor Leaguers in shutouts and complete games, tops the Class A Sally League with a 1.30 ERA and is tied for third with 75 strikeouts.

Cohoon last allowed a run on May 27 against Kannapolis, but has not yielded an earned run in four starts since May 22. His success goes back even further -- he has not given up more than two runs in any of his 13 starts.

The Texas native's lone loss came on May 17 against Augusta when he surrendered two runs on seven hits over five innings. Opponents are hitting .213 against him with only two homers in 90 1/3 innings.

Cohoon anchors a Savannah staff that owns a Minor League-best 2.50 ERA, nearly three-quarters of a run lower than the next closest SAL team. Wednesday's win moved the Sand Gnats into a first-place tie with Augusta in the Southern Division as they seek their first playoff berth since 1996.

"Our pitching coach, Marc Valdes, has done a real good job in the bullpen with the mental part of the game," Cohoon said. "You're not going to feel the same physically every outing, I just try to tell myself be the same pitcher every time out and trust my stuff and try to be the pitcher that I am. I just pitch to contact and throw a lot of strikes."

Cohoon is one of six players who will represent the Sand Gnats in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game. Already a two-time Pitcher of the Week this spring, he was a New York-Penn League All-Star last summer after compiling a 9-2 record and 2.15 ERA for short-season Brooklyn.

"Last year, I had trouble with curveball command and throwing all three pitches for a strike," Cohoon said. "That's something I've been very conscious about, just throwing all three pitches for a strike, as well as shutting down the running game."

Pedro Zapata paced the Sand Gnats' offense, going 5-for-5 with a double and four RBIs. Former fifth-round pick Dock Doyle and Mike Fisher each drove in three runs, with Fisher collecting a triple and a double.

"Every time up, [Zapata] hit the ball hard, which is a really good sign," Cohoon said. "It's really good to hit the ball hard five times and get on five times. He worked the count deep and made the pitchers make mistakes."

Robert Emrich is a contributor to MLB.com.