This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Sports

River City's Sterner Heads to All-Star Game

Sterner has been one of the top pitchers in the 12-team independent league since signing with the Rascals late last June. He is 12-2 overall, including going 6-1 with a 2.24 ERA so far this season.

River City righthander Zack Sterner can give a tip of the cap to Miami Heat basketball standout LeBron James for his current run as one of the top pitchers in the Frontier League.     

Sterner, who will start for the West Division squad in the All-Star game in Avon, OH Wednesday night, learned early on that baseball would have to be his game of choice.     

A three-sport standout at Franklin High in Pennsylvania. Sterner's school went up against the James-led St. Vincent-St. Mary's High team from Akron, OH on Jan. 11, 2002 in a much-anticipated game at Rhodes Arena in Akron.    

Find out what's happening in O'Fallonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The results were not pretty.    

"I couldn't stop him," Sterner recalled. "No one could."    

Find out what's happening in O'Fallonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

James, a junior, scored 22 points in just 18 minutes to lead his team to an easy 80-40 victory.    

That got Sterner to thinking that maybe he should concentrate on baseball or football. As it turned out, baseball was his strongest sport.    

"It wasn't pretty that night," he said. "But, I guess everything worked out."    

Did it ever.    

Sterner has been one of the top pitchers in the 12-team Frontier League since signing with the Rascals late last June. He is 12-2 overall including 6-1 with a 2.24 ERA so far this season.    

His ability to consistently throw strikes has made him the most feared pitcher in the West Division.    

Sterner has been so impressive that most insiders feel he will likely get signed by a professional organization within the next few weeks. A strong performance on Wednesday in front of a host of pro scouts could serve as his ticket to a second shot at the major leagues.    

"He deserves to be out of here," said River City catcher Danny Sawyer. "It's obvious, he's one of the best around."    

"I expect to lose him," added Rascals manager Steve Brook.    

The 25-year-old is indeed on fire. He came within one out of pitching the first perfect game in the 19-year history of the Frontier League before settling for a one-hitter in a 7-0 win at Evansville on June 19.

That effort sent him on a three-game win-streak during which he allowed just nine hits and three runs over 26 innings.    

Sterner may have saved his best effort for family and friends. He surrendered just three hits and one run in a 7-1 win at Washington on June 30 in front of 25 spectators, who made the three-plus hour trip from his home town of Franklin for the contest.    

The 6-foot-2-inch 185-pounder possesses a wide array of pitches including a deadly sinker. He pitches to contact, preferring to make the hitters pound his sinker and two-seam fastball into the ground.    

"I wouldn't be anywhere were it not for my defense," Sterner says. "I'm not a strikeout guy. I put a lot of pressure on my defense. They make the plays and it makes me look good. Believe me, I couldn't do it without them."   

Sterner is hoping for a second shot in affiliated baseball. He was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 17th round of the 2007 Draft. The 533rd overall choice, Sterner put together a stellar 10-2 campaign with the Lakewood Blue Claws, the Phillies' Class A affiliate in the South Atlantic League in 2008.    

He got off to a quick 2-1 start in 2009 before suffering a serious arm injury that cut short his campaign. That ailment led to Tommy John elbow surgery in May, which forced him to miss 101 games over the next year.    

Sterner came back from the injury but struggled out of the gate and was released by the Philadelphia organization 13 months ago.    

The Rascals quickly signed him on June 26. Sterner played a key role in leading River City to the league championship last summer going 1-0 with an 0.56 ERA in two post-season starts.    

"Signing him was one of the keys to us winning it all," said River City General Manager Chris Franklin. "We just jumped at getting him, and in the end, he was one of our best starters."   

Many pitchers struggle to return to form after major arm surgery. But Sterner has flourished. Some scouts feel he is throwing even better than before the operation.    

For now, Sterner is more concerned about leading the Rascals to another title than he is about a professional contract.   

"I'm enjoying myself 100 percent," he says. "This is fun baseball."   

In addition to his on-field skills, Sterner is a huge asset to the team off the diamond as well. He spends time after each game signing autographs for children until the last request is fulfilled. He is constantly posing for photographs with kids and never fails to talk to youngsters about the game.   

Sterner has spent the last 13 months living with Sandy and Bruce Garrett of St. Charles County. The Garrett's are one of numerous host families for the River City players.

"He's a joy to have around," said Sandy Garrett. "He's like one of the family."   

Sterner, who attended Tennessee Wesleyan College in Athens, realizes that the clock may be ticking on his playing career. He has an interesting Plan B in order. He spent last spring as the Pitching Coach at Roane State Community College in Harriman, Tennessee and would like to get into the managerial trade as well. He is giving his playing career one last shot before moving on to the coaching level on a full-time basis.   

"Next year at this time, if I'm on the field somewhere, it will likely be as a coach," he said.     

But at this point, Sterner is concentrating on finishing the summer in style with the Rascals.    

"Another championship is the only thing we're going to settle for," he said. "And we're going to try our hardest to make it happen again."

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from O'Fallon