Drafted in the 22nd round of the June Major League draft by the New York Mets, Stronach had modest goals after signing a contract and leaving for Kingsport, Tenn., to play for the Mets' rookie league team.

"Basically, I want to get some good stats and just get my feet wet," said Stronach before heading for Tennessee. "I want to find out what it's like."

After a full summer in the Appalachian League, Stronach, 20, is understandably far more upbeat, as well he should. A starter for the entire summer, Stronach compiled a 4-2 record with a 3.76 ERA, striking out 40 in 64 innings. He was the team's Player of the Week at one point and won one of the team's biggest games.

Needing a victory against Elizabethtown to complete a sweep and keep the Mets in the playoff hunt, Stronach pitched 62/3 strong innings, striking out seven and allowing just one earned run in a 7-2 victory.

"I was actually amazed at how well I did," said Stronach. "I was pretty nervous when I went there and didn't think I'd throw as much as I did. I was really happy about it."

So were the Mets. They invited him down to their Florida complex for the Fall Instructional League, a three-week period that began last week. That is considered a high honor.

That put on hold his plans to begin completing his degree at Worcester State. He has two semesters remaining and had already signed up for fall classes when he got the call to head south.

"They asked me if I was interested (in the instructional league) and, of course, I said yes," said Stronach. "I would have gone anyway but another player told me they don't like it if you turn them down."

While in Florida, Stronach hopes to work on his curveball, which mysteriously failed him in the summer. However, he picked up another pitch which helped immeasurably.

"I went down with a fastball, curveball and slider and I picked up a changeup which I think was my most effective pitch," said Stronach, a former Whittier Tech standout. "I couldn't find my curveball, but I had success with my other pitches."

Stronach's pitches were consistently clocked between 87 and 92 miles per hour.

"They want me to gain weight and stick to their workout program, and then my velocity should improve," said the 6-5, 190-pound Stronach.

After returning from Florida, Stronach intends to spend most of the offseason in Worcester, working out with Worcester State head coach Dirk Baker and several of his former Lancer teammates. If all goes well, he's hoping to skip a level (Brooklyn in the New York-Penn League) and move up to the Hagerstown, Md., long season Class A team next year.

"That's my goal and I've been told I have a good chance of making it if I keep to my workouts," said Stronach.

Yes, while outlooks can change quickly in professional sports, the outlook is indeed bright.

Regional minor league wrapup

Boxford's Jamie Baker didn't let the late summer heat bring him down with the Nashua Pride of the independent Can-Am League. If anything, the Masconomet graduate just got stronger.

After an outstanding season for Wheaton College (1.80 ERA, 10 saves), Baker didn't skip a beat playing at a higher level with the Pride. Primarily used as a setup man, Baker finished the season with a 3-1 record and 1.82 ERA, allowing just 21 hits in 34 innings, striking out 31. Opponents batted just .179 against him. ...

Another local pitcher on the Pride, Windham's Lenny Carter was not quite as successful, finishing with an 0-3 record and 6.35 ERA. ...

Pelham's Derek Miller, after a slow start, came on strong following a promotion by the Milwaukee Brewers to the Brevard County (Fla.) Manatees of the Class-A Florida State League. He posted a 1-3 record and 3.91 ERA (after starting 0-2, 5.63 ERA in five games) for the Manatees. He began the season in the South Atlantic League, going 8-2 with a 3.57 ERA for the West Virginia Power. ...

Another Python product, Doug Johnson, finished his second season with the Sioux Falls (S.D.) Canaries in independent league ball with a 5-8 record and 4.68 ERA. ...

Salem's Jeff Mackor, who missed three weeks of action with a strained oblique muscle, ended his season for the Salem (Va.) Avalanche of the Class-A Carolina League on an upswing. The 26-year-old catcher finished the year batting .272 with two home runs and an impressive 31 RBIs in just 51 games.

Of course, Mackor's season highlight was catching Roger Clemens for one of his minor league starts prior to joining the Astros. ...

Another catcher, Andover's Ryan Hanigan, hit .246 in 56 games for the Chattanooga Lookouts, a Double A team for the Cincinnati Reds. Hanigan had hit .321 for the Lookouts a year ago. ...

Haverhill's Omar Pena, who spent considerable time in extended spring training because of an injury, wound up hitting .250 for the Burlington (Iowa) Bees, a Class-A team for the Kansas City Royals. Pena played shortstop for the Bees.