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06/08/2008 3:15 PM ET
Rollins goes the distance in three-hit gem
Vero Beach starter ties career high with 10 strikeouts against Sarasota
By Danny Wild / Special to MLB.com
Heath Rollins led the Minor Leagues with 17 wins last season for Class A Columbus. (Jerry Hale/MLB.com)

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Not only did Heath Rollins pitch the best game of his career Sunday, but he did it with only 85 pitches.

Rollins (3-5) tied a career high with 10 strikeouts in a complete-game shutout as the Vero Beach Devil Rays blanked the visiting Sarasota Reds, 6-0.

Rollins struck out 10 for the second time this season and allowed just three hits without issuing a walk in the longest outing of his three-year career.

"I would say it was one of my best games," Rollins said. "I felt pretty good as far as throwing my pitches for strikes, and my defense was good. It was a good day overall for us."

The Devil Rays (32-31) scored early for their starter, who relied upon his improved fastball command to set up hitters for the strikeout.

"I was locating my fastball down and getting ahead with that," said Rollins, who led the Minors with 17 wins last season for Class A Columbus. "My breaking ball was good, I kept it down in the zone. I felt like I was in command of all my pitches."

It was Rollins' first nine-inning complete game and his first since allowing one run on four hits over seven innings in a doubleheader start for Columbus against Charleston last Aug. 29. The win marked the third time Rollins has pitched at least eight innings in his career.

Rollins said the harsh Florida sun encourages a less-is-more approach.

"It was pretty hot, so I was starting to get a little tired, but I think the pitch count allowed me to go out there and finish it," he said. "[The heat] helps you get loose a lot faster. You just need to drink a lot of fluids and conserve your energy as much as you can."

The Rays offense did their part to let Rollins cool off in the dugout. J.T. Hall, who went 3-for-5, gave Rollins the early lead with a two-RBI single off Enerio Del Rosario in athe first. Cesar Suarez hit a sacrifice fly in the third, Hall lined an RBI single in the fourth and scored on a grounder in the eighth. Ryan Royster singled twice and added an RBI grounder to help Vero Beach climb back over .500.

"It's definitely nice to get a break [between innings]," Rollins said. "We jumped out to a lead in the first and just kind of coasted from there. Every inning we had a runner in scoring position it seemed."

Meanwhile, Rollins dominated with his off-speed pitches.

"I got [most of the strikeouts] mostly on the breaking ball, a few on the fastball," he said.

The victory was Rollins' best effort since fanning six while holding St. Lucie to a pair of hits over seven shutout innings May 13.

"I'm just concentrating on a start-to-start basis, I'm not really thinking about what's going to happen," Rollins said about eventually moving up. "I'll take it one start at a time, do my job and give us a chance to win."

The right-hander surrendered a hit immediately when Joe Castro led off the game with a single to center and another one by Todd Frazier in the top of the second. Rollins struck out one in the first, two in the second and fanned the leadoff batter in the third. He worked around Chris Heisey's double in the fourth, struck out one in the fifth, two in the sixth, one in the seventh, another in the eighth and ended the game striking out Juan Francisco swinging.

He pointed to his ever-improving fastball command for his recent success.

"[This season] started off kind of rough, I had a little trouble locating my fastball," Rollins said. "Right now, I just want to gain some confidence, and everything feels good right now. I need to keep moving forward."

The 23-year-old lowered his ERA to 3.89 in his 12th start. He was roughed up for six runs in 5 2/3 innings in his previous appearance June 3, five days after hurling seven shutout innings against the Mets.

Del Rosario (0-2) struck out two and allowed four runs on nine hits and four walks over four innings for the Reds.

Rollins, Tampa Bay's 11th-round pick in 2006, dominated last season and finished 17-4 with a 2.54 ERA in 27 starts. He was named Pitcher of the Week four times and was voted ono the South Atlantic League All-Star squad after his promotion from short-season Hudson Valley.

Sunday's win was another memorable moment in Rollins' career. Before joining the Rays, he pitched and played right field at Winthrop University, where he batted .328 with four homers, 31 RBIs and 25 stolen bases while posting a 13-4 record and a 3.51 ERA in 22 games on the mound as a senior.

Danny Wild is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.