There’s no doubt about it, Bedford’s Nick Asselin is the ace of the American Defenders of New Hampshire starting rotation.

His six-inning, one-run performance in NH’s 10-1 win on Saturday night before a crowd of 1, 858 that snapped a 12-game Brockton winning streak said so.

“Nick’s really coming around,” Defenders manager Brian Daubach said. “Nobody else has stepped up. He’s been huge every time, especially his last three starts. We really needed it…He came out there and just did the job.”

What’s separated him from the pack, besides his ability to throw strikes (two walks last night, just 13 walks in 60 innings? It’s his cut fastball, which has righthanders waving.

“Seven-eight years ago, everybody went to the split finger,” Daubach said. “Now, the last two or three years, it seems the cutter has become the pitch. And Nick’s cutter has really come along. I know he didn’t throw one before he came here.”

So why is he doing it now? He learned it from Defenders closer Juan Padilla.

“For righties, especially first-pitch fastball guys, it’ll get them to check or hit it off the end of the bat,” Asselin said. “And then for lefties, it looks like a fastball coming, it gets in on them, and they can’t do anything with it.

“Before coming here, it would always back up on me. He (Padilla) and I just worked on the side together, and it’s been getting a lot better and getting the right movement on it.”

“It’s good he would go to a veteran guy,” Daubach said. “Use your resources. Nick’s smart enough to know that Padilla’s been around. It’s good.”

How does Asselin, whom Daubach didn’t feel had his best stuff in the early innings Saturday, feel about being ordained the ace?

“I like being the one to be counted on,” Asselin said. “It’s a couple of pitches away from some other guys (like Lucas Ledbetter on Friday) getting some really quality starts. One or two pitches to get those guys out…That’s the big thing. When you get into jams, you need to battle yourself out. That’s the biggest thing, just being able to really focus in and get the job done when there’s runners on base.”

And on Saturday, he did that, leaving a runner at third in the first and getting Dom Ramos to strike out looking with the bases loaded in the second, and the Rox left runners on first and second in the third. After that, NH was up 8-0 and, as Daubach said, “This is the first time we’ve cruised to a win in about a month.”

And thus the first half ends for New Hampshire at 21-26.

– TOM KING