JEFFERSON TWP — At 22 years old, Scott Rice has had to re-invent himself.

No longer the power pitcher he was at SlipperyRock HighSchool, running counts to 3-2 regularly and wracking up huge strikeout numbers, Rice has become a smarter pitcher out of necessity.

His pitch counts are down this summer while toeing the rubber for the Saxonburg Eagle County League baseball team. An arm-draining curveball in no longer in his repertoire. Instead he uses a sneaky fastball, splitter and changeup to get people out.

And his shoulder, surgically repaired two years ago, is happy about that.

"He's hitting his spots," said Saxonburg manager Dan Cunningham. "He's doing it with a fastball, a splitter and a change, that's it."

The approach has worked.

Rice, who came into the summer as a huge unknown for the defending Eagle County League champions in the first year of his second stint with the team, has developed into one of the staff aces.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander is 6-0 with a 1.57 earned run average. In 40 innings, he has given up just 24 hits, seven walks and has struck out 27.

Two years ago, he was on the Saxonburg roster but didn't throw a pitch because of his shoulder ailments.

"I knew I had it in me," Rice said. "I had confidence in myself. I knew I had the stuff."

His stuff was slow to come around for the Slippery Rock University baseball team in the spring.

The redshirt sophomore was 2-2 with a 5.32 ERA in 45X\c innings for The Rock — not jaw-dropping numbers to be sure.

Rice still has some shoulder issues. He has a labrum injury that he struggles with from time to time.

But he's learned to pitch through it.

"My rotator cuff is at full strength," Rice said. "But it's been a matter of building my confidence. I looked at the Eagle County League as a way to get on the mound and build my arm up."

It's worked. He has thrown four complete games and has worked into the sixth inning in his other two starts.

Rice said he owes a lot of his revamped pitching style to Jory Coughenour. The former Washington Wild Things pitcher worked with Rice throughout his recovery.

He changed his delivery and worked on limiting his pitch counts, making the most of a moving fastball that Coughenour told him he could use as four different pitches in one.

Rice said his shoulder injury was a blessing in many ways. It taught him how to be a pitcher instead of a thrower.

"It seems like my velocity during my junior year in high school was the best it has ever been," Rice said. "I haven't been clocked, but I know I don't throw as hard as I did back then.

"It's helped me a lot," Rice added. "I hooked up with Jory Coughenour and he told me just throwing my fastball, I could win."

But Rice said developing another pitch was paramount. He turned to the split finger — a pitch difficult to master but one with a high upside.

"I developed it last fall,"Rice said. "It's come a long way."

Just ask Eagle County League hitters about that.

Rice's resurrection has been a big reason whySaxonburg is 20-3 and in the hunt for another championship.

"I can't say enough how well he has pitched for us," Cunningham said. "He's really come through for us and (SRU) coach (Jeff) Messer is going to be very happy withScott next spring."