"It killed him to be out there for a four-run first inning in which he threw 35 pitches and faced nine batters. It was hardly the way 42-year-old John Smoltz wanted to reenter the majors.

The hardest thing for great veteran pitchers like Smoltz and Pedro Martínez and Roger Clemens to prove is that they can still pitch at a high level with reduced velocity. The jury is out on whether Smoltz can, but in his mind, the verdict has been rendered: He's back.

Smoltz actually threw harder than expected, consistently at 92 with his fastball, with a smattering of 93s and even a 94 on the gun. But it's not the 96-98 he used to hit when he could just rear back and blow away the competition.

Smoltz thinks he can win with what he has.

"I definitely have enough [velocity] right now,'' he said, following last night's 9-3 loss to the Nationals. "My fastball is probably better than I give it credit for. I probably didn't establish enough fastballs. The intensity of the game will show down the road. And maybe those numbers go up, but it's irrelevant if the numbers go up and my ball goes up. I know what in-game adjustments I have to make.

"I'm astute on one thing. This type of game sticks in my memory.''

The last thing Smoltz wants is for anyone to make excuses for him, so there will be none offered here. His first outing was disappointing, but he recovered nicely after the first innings, striking out the side in the fifth. He was trying to find himself and he eventually did, but he knows there can't be too many first-inning meltdowns."