Major League Baseball

Giants' Heston has come a long way since his junior college days

Published Jun. 10, 2015 1:07 p.m. ET

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Sam Gardner

On Monday night, Seminole State College baseball coach Mike Nicholson texted San Francisco Giants pitcher Chris Heston, a former right-hander with the Raiders, to catch up and wish him good luck in his next start, Tuesday against the Mets.

Heston wrote Nicholson back and said he was busy seeing the sights in New York with some teammates on the Giants’ off-day following a three-game set in Philadelphia but thanked Nicholson for the kind wishes and promised him he’d give him a call soon.

Then, 24 hours later, Heston took the mound for San Francisco and shut down the Mets in just the 13th start of his big-league career, throwing the first no-hitter of the major league season and the 17th in Giants franchise history.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see it, but one of my assistants texted me and let me know what he’d just done,” Nicholson told FOX Sports on Wednesday morning. “So I pulled up our text (from the day before) and wrote him back: ‘Chris, whatever you did last night, keep doing it.’ ”

Originally from Palm Bay, Fla., about 30 miles south of Cocoa Beach on the state’s east coast, Heston played for Nicholson at what was then known as Seminole Community College in 2007 and 2008. Nicholson said he wasn’t sure he had a future star in the lanky righty but knew he was worth a shot.

“We saw an upside to him that he had a chance to be a pretty good college pitcher,” Nicholson said. “After that, who knows?”

During his time at Seminole, just outside Orlando, Heston was good but not great for the Raiders, who won their conference championship both years he was on the roster. In 2007, Heston struck out 41 batters in 51 innings and went 6-4 with a 4.40 ERA, and in 2008, he threw 56 innings, going 2-5 with a 5.00 ERA and 47 strikeouts.

Those efforts, while not statistically overwhelming, were enough to catch the eye of a few professional scouts. The Twins took Heston in the 47th round of the 2007 draft, and in 2008, the Nationals drafted him in the 29th round, but Heston balked at both opportunities and ultimately went on to play at East Carolina.

In Nicholson’s opinion, it was the right choice for a pitcher who needed a little more seasoning before he was ready to move on to the professional level.

“We always try to project players out, and we were hoping (he’d be a good pro), but guys like him are a little harder to project because they’re not the power arm,” Nicholson said. “You know what all the pro guys are looking for, and he’s not that 95-plus fastball. For him, it’s pitchability, and a lot of times it takes those guys a bit longer to get there and for a club to see their value and give them an opportunity.”

That’s exactly what Heston has gotten with the Giants. San Francisco drafted Heston in the 12th round in 2009, and after six years in the minors — the last of which was a 12-9, 3.38 ERA campaign at Triple-A Fresno last season — Heston got the call to the big leagues, making his debut in the ninth inning of 17-0 loss to the Dodgers last September 13.

All told, Heston pitched 5 ⅓ unremarkable innings in three appearances last year, including one start. But he made the Giants’ rotation coming out of spring training this season thanks in part to an injury to Matt Cain and has been solid ever since, posting a 6-4 record with a 3.77 ERA, including last night’s start, which would have been a perfect game if not for three hit batters.

“I was just ecstatic,” Nicholson said of his reaction to the feat. “You’re so happy for him, first because he’s living his dream of becoming a Major League Baseball player, and now to have success like that at that level, it’s just incredible. He got his chance to go up to the big leagues and he’s made the best of it.”

Heston isn’t the only former Raider to see the big leagues this season. Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon, Astros left-hander Brett Oberholtzer and Mets catcher Johnny Monell, back at Triple-A Las Vegas since late May, have all been in the majors the season. Gordon, a 2014 All-Star with the highest batting average in baseball this season, is  the biggest star among them.

“Obviously, when you have a good piece of clay to work with as a coach, it makes you a better coach, and we’ve definitely had some good players over the years,” Nicholson said. “So the success that Chris and these other young men have had has been great for them and for us, as well. We’re very proud of them.”

But with a no-hitter now under his belt, Heston is giving Gordon a run for his money, and that lanky sinker-baller Nicholson recruited to the small Central Florida junior college? He’s long gone, replaced by something much, much better.

“A lot of it is physical and emotional maturity,” Nicholson said of Heston’s improvement. “He was a tall, skinny kid and he’s probably put on 20 or more pounds (since he played at Seminole). He’s stronger, understands what his strengths and weaknesses are, understands how to get hitters out better, and from what I’ve seen — I haven’t seen him live, but I’ve watched him on TV — he’s really worked on that sinker and that movement and being able to command that movement within the strike zone.

“I think that’s really what’s made him successful,” he added. “They have to respect that, and then you throw those breaking balls in there with it, and it keeps hitters off-balance.”

You can follow Sam Gardner on Twitter or email him at samgardnerfox@gmail.com.

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