Strasburg Scratched From Start

Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg was scratched from his start last night due to right shoulder inflammation. I was ecstatic because I'm playing against him this week in fantasy and didn't feel like seeing his numbers as 27 K's, 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP and a win. Strasburg has been nothing short of exceptional for the Nationals this year and the team has no interest in taking even the smallest of risks with Strasburg. He is listed as day-to-day and not expected to be put on the DL. In nine starts for Washington, Strasburg is 5-2 with a 2.32 ERA, 75 strikeouts and 15 walks in 54 1/3 innings. He has won his past three starts.

And if you happened to miss this gem, this is what a Strasburg curveball looks like:

Not Quite Steve Nebraska

Yeah, yeah - it wasn't Steve Nebraska (a perfect game, 27 strike outs, 81 pitches) but it was pretty amazing nonetheless. As we stated earlier, it was the most hyped pitching debut the game has ever seen. As Andy Behrens points out, "the problem, as it turns out, is that the kid was inadequately hyped". That's saying something.


Just how good was his debut? Strasburg pitched 7 innings, gave up 4 hits, 0 walks!, 2 earned runs and struck out 14!!! Before tonight the most strike outs by a Nats pitcher in a game this year was 8. He nearly doubled that! Another fact to boggle your mind - no pitcher in baseball history had struck out 14+ hitters in 96 pitches or less...Strasburg did it in 94. Everyone knows it is much harder to get outs the 2nd and 3rd times through a lineup but Strasburg struck out the last 7 batters he faced! Naysayers might argue that he was facing the 5th worst team in the majors but if you saw his pitches you would argue otherwise. He intimidated hitters with a 97 MPH plus fastball then teased them with a ridiculous 80 MPH curve that Albert Pujols will have trouble hitting.


All in all it was a great night for the Nationals as they finally sold-out Nats Park and gave their fans the glimmer of hope they have been yearning for. Strasburg struck out every Pirates hitter at least once and proved hype is just another 4-letter word in the dictionary. If you still can't get your Strasburg fix, D.C. restaurants have already started selling "Strasburgers". UGH!

Merry Strasmas!

It's Christmas in June at Nats Park today as Stephen Strasburg, a "once in a lifetime" pitching prospect, makes his major league debut. First pitch is in less than an hour and the publicity over the whole event has been ridiculous. After tickets sold out (which is quite rare for a Nubbinals game) the Nats released 2,000 standing room only tickets at 2pm today. Fans started lining up at 5:30am for the standing room tickets.

If you live under a rock or only read this blog for the gay pop culture posts, Stephen Strasburg is a 21 year old pitcher drafted first overall by the Nats last summer. He signed a record $15.1 million dollar deal and has been dominating the minors ever since. ESPN called him the "most hyped pick in draft history" and he has done nothing since then to let us down. He gets to face the lowly Pirates tonight - 3rd (or should I say 4th) perfect game of the season anyone? Strasburg attacks hitters with a 100 MPH fastball and then can buckle their knees with an 80 MPH curve. I think everyone in D.C. is expecting nothing short of a Steve Nebraska performance tonight. SI just wrote an article about Strasburg's debut, calling it "the most hyped pitching debut the game has ever seen". If that isn't pressure I don't know what is. You can catch the game on MLB Network. Enjoy the poem below.

The Night Before Strasmas (by Billy Blog Thornton)

'Twas the night before Strasmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The gloves were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that Stephen Strasburg soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of strikeouts danced in their heads;

Merry Strasmas to all, and to all a good night!