New for the 2011-2012 seasons, the America East Daily Word, a collaboration between AmericaEast.com and AExtra, will recap the previous day's games and on goings on our nine campuses and provide links to previews, recaps, features and exclusive coverage.

A two-time America East Pitcher of the Year, former Stony Brook hurler Nick Tropeano has not lost a beat since he was drafted by the Houston Astros last June.

During his first season a professional ball player, Tropeano played for the Astros’ short-season Single-A affiliate Tri-City Valley Cats. And he dominated. In 12 starts, Tropeano posted a 2.36 ERA giving up just 14 earned runs in 53.1 innings pitched while striking out 63.

That prompted a call-up to the next level of A-ball and a new uniform for the 17^th ranked prospect in the Astros organization. Suiting up now for the Lexington Legends in the South Atlantic League, Tropeano has been twice named pitcher of the week. The award has only been handed out four times this year. Boasting a miniscule 1.87 ERA in four starts (0.45 ERA on the road), MinorLeagueBaseball.com spoke with the righthander in this week’s SAL notes.

“Everything is really working, and I'm throwing all of my pitches for strikes," Tropeano said in the segment. “This past offseason I got into a good workout regimen, which has increased my velocity a little bit.”

Tropeano is scheduled to pitch this weekend in a series against the Hagerstown Suns, an affiliate of the Washington Nationals.

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