Strike-throwing Strotman unhittable for six

From the first pitch Drew Strotman threw on Wednesday, he was well aware of what was going on.
"I knew it once it got going. I knew when I was done with the first inning that I hadn't thrown any balls and I knew after the second and after the third," he said. "I knew it the whole time."
The Rays' fourth-round pick in last month's Draft began the night with 31 consecutive strikes and tossed six no-hit innings in Class A Short Season Hudson Valley's 7-1 win over Vermont at Centennial Field. He issued a pair of walks and fanned four.

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"It was fun," the 20-year-old right-hander said. "Pitching is always fun and I was just going to continue to attack the strike zone because I'm sure every hitter was thinking I was bound to throw a ball eventually. So I just kept on attacking and getting ahead. Being ruthless, even when you are ahead, was the game plan."
Strotman didn't throw his first pitch out of the strike zone until the 12th batter he faced, A's second-round pick Greg Deichmann, who eventually walkled. Before that, Strotman had recorded six of 10 outs on ground balls.
"When you get ahead of hitters, they'll get themselves out," he said.
The Saint Mary's College product issued his other walk with one out in the fifth to Jack Meggs but got help from his middle infielders as shortstop Taylor Walls and second baseman Vidal Brujan turned a line-drive double play two batters later.

"It helps that we've got a pretty good defense behind me," Strotman said of Walls and Brujan, who also turned two in the fourth to erase Deichmann. "They were making some big plays for me."
Strotman made way for the bullpen after throwing 75 pitches, the most of his five outings as a pro.
"I understood that we are at a pitch count and it's not something to negotiate with," he said. "So at that point, I was just hoping the bullpen can pick me up, and they did a pretty good job after me as well."
It was the second straight start for Strotman, who tossed 7 1/3 innings out of the bullpen to begin the season. He allowed three hits over five scoreless innings in his previous start on July 13 against West Virginia.
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"I'm more comfortable as a starter," said Strotman, who served in both roles in college. "It's nice having your own game to work with and be able to settle into a game instead of coming into a situation where it's already tight. You can kind of develop a rhythm as a starter, and that's what I appreciate."
Matt Vogel took over in the seventh and yielded a leadoff single to Deichmann before working 1 1/3 innings. Hunter Schryver struck out three over the final 1 2/3 frames.
Brujan and Zacrey Law slugged solo homers for the Renegades, while Rafelin Lorenzo went deep and drove in three runs. Rays first-round pick Brendan McKay -- drafted fourth overall -- collected his first two professional hits with singles to right in the first and center in the sixth after 0-for-4 in his first two games with Hudson Valley.