Pawtucket Red Sox

01:00 AM EDT on Tuesday, June 20, 2006

BY BRUCE WELLS
Special to the Journal

RICHMOND, Va. -- In 2002, Charlie Zink was just your average fastball-cutter-curveball pitcher in the low minor leagues -- until one summer afternoon when fate intervened.

While playing for Augusta and warming up on the field with the team's trainer, Zink decided to play around with a knuckleball, a pitch that he had last thrown with a Wiffleball in his backyard. The result of the experiment sent the ball into the trainer's face. The trainer required 10 stitches in his cheek and nose. Augusta management took notice and told Zink to work his new weapon into his repertoire whenever the count was 0-and-2 or no one was in scoring position.

Gradually, the knuckleball became his primary pitch.

The 26-year-old right-hander put his knuckleball to work against the Richmond Braves last night and helped the Pawtucket Red Sox post a 5-3 win at The Diamond.

The victory enabled the PawSox to match their season high of two games over .500, and they're now poised to sweep the series against Richmond this afternoon at 2.

"That was a big one tonight," said PawSox manager Ron Johnson. "After yesterday's 17-inning marathon, we didn't have any arms left in the bullpen, so when Charlie got the ball he knew he was going to be out there for five, six (innings) or whatever it took, and he did an outstanding job."

Zink scattered six hits over seven innings and didn't allow a run until the seventh, when he left a fastball over the plate that Braves leadoff hitter Bill McCarthy launched to right for a home run.

"There's not a lot a pitching coach can actually tell a knuckleball pitcher," PawSox pitching coach Mike Griffin said. "It's all feel, and he either has the feel or he doesn't. When it's good, you don't know where it's going."

In his three starts since returning from Portland, Zink is 2-0 with a 1.00 E.R.A.

Adam Stern doubled and scored in the first to put Pawtucket up, 1-0. He added a solo home run in the third to make it 2-0. Davis Murphy tripled and scored in the sixth.

McCarthy's home run pulled Richmond to within 3-1. Alejandro Machado doubled and scored in the eighth to make it 4-1. The Braves tagged reliever Ryan Schroyer for two runs in the bottom of the eighth. Luke Allen doubled and scored for Pawtucket in the ninth.

Schroyer closed out Richmond in the bottom of the ninth, sending the Braves to a record-tying 11th straight loss.

NOTES: Today's road trip finale will end a stretch that has had the PawSox playing 16 of 20 games in June on the road . . . Pawtucket is 12-3 in day games and 24-31 at night . . . The PawSox, one under the roster limit of 23 players, will add RHP Kevin Guyette today from Wilmington (Class A) to start against the Braves.