Toth

Zach Toth knew the time was coming, but he didn't know when it would arrive.

The Knoch High School graduate was a starter in waiting for the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown baseball team, but he still was waiting for his chance to leave the bullpen.

As it turned out, that day was April 1.

Toth started against Fairmont (W.Va.) State in the first game of a doubleheader, and the sophomore struck out five batters in six innings as the Mountain Cats rolled to a 22-9 victory.

With the win, Toth improved to 4-0 for the 18-8 UPJ squad, which is now ranked fifth in the North Atlantic Region.

"We always projected him as a starter. He has such good control of his pitches," said UPJ coach Todd Williams. "We needed someone who could throw strikes."

"They said I'd have a chance to be in the starting rotation," said Toth. "Basically, I was pitching pretty well and they gave me a chance to start."

As a freshman last year, Toth pitched in five games, going 0-1 in 6 1 Qe innings. He struck out six and walked none.

"We had a senior-laden staff," said Williams. "Zach came in and learned on the fly."

Toth has pitched in eight games this season. In 26 Qe innings, he has 18 strikeouts, five walks and a 5.13 ERA.

Coming out of the bullpen, Toth earned the victory in UPJ wins against Northwood University 1-0, 11-7 over Northland University and 8-7 over the University of Charleston before moving to the starting rotation.

"Coming out of the bullpen, I didn't expect to have three wins," said Toth. "That's just the way things fell."

"I think he'll be fine with it," said Williams on Toth's move. "He's that type of athlete. He rolls with the punches.

"He doesn't let anything bother him on the mound. He's very focused and not afraid of any situation," Williams added.

Toth boasts three pitches in his repertoire, fastball, curveball and changeup, and is comfortable with all three. He said he also has other things to offer the team.

"My hard work ethic and a little leadership with some of the freshmen pitchers," said Toth, who is majoring in accounting.

Toth expected the team to be strong this year, "but with some of the close games, I thought we'd be a bit better."

Williams agrees.

"We've played in a lot of extra-inning games," said Williams. "We lost two of those games and another game in the last inning. We could be 21-5, but anyone can beat anyone on any given day. The competition is so tight right now."

Toth said he would have accepted pitching only in relief the rest of the season, but he longed to return to the starting rotation.

"Yeah, it felt really good," said Toth on his first start back. "I had control of the game right from the start.

"I just want to pitch, to go out on the mound and help the team win."