Strasburg headed to Triple-A
Posted by Christopher Glotfelty (05/02/2010 @ 4:00 pm)
According to a report by MLB.com, Stephen Strasbrug will likely be promoted to Triple-A following his game today for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 Draft went 3-0 with a 0.52 ERA on the month. He’s collected 23 strikeouts over 17 1/3 innings, and he hasn’t given up an earned run since his first professional start. Over his last two outings, he’s allowed one hit and one walk over 10 innings. Considering these numbers, a move from the Double-A Eastern League was only a matter of how soon.
Strasburg will reportedly throw 85 pitches or five innings on Sunday and may make a start late next week against the International League’s Gwinnett Braves.
This news should please Nationals fans. It only took a month for Strasburg to impress in Double-A, so hopefully he doesn’t hit any bumps in the road at the next stage.
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Strasburg to start season in Nationals’ rotation?
Posted by Anthony Stalter (02/26/2010 @ 11:50 am)
After seeing the 2009 top overall pick throw several impressive bullpen outings recently, Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said it’s not in his plans to have Stephen Strasburg begin the season in the starting rotation, but he wouldn’t rule out the possibility either.
This stance differs from what Riggleman said last weekend when he indicated that Strasburg would likely being the 2010 season in the minors. Riggleman said he would remain open-minded about the idea of the pitcher making the big league club out of spring training, but also noted that Strasburg isn’t really competing for a spot in the rotation. However, as soon as Riggleman saw Strasburg throw his second bullpen session of the spring, he said that the pitching prodigy was “off-the-charts good.”
Strasburg’s fastball, curveball and changeup are already good enough to face Major League hitters. But it will be his control that ultimately decides whether or not he starts in the show or in the minor leagues. If he blows away the competition this spring, the Nationals may want to start him in the rotation this year to get him big league experience and also sell some tickets in the process.
That said, rushing a prospect before he’s ready is a good way to ruin his career. Some players never recover after being brought up too soon, although there have been others (Albert Pujols and Tim Lincecum to name a couple) that have became stars right away. We’ll see how Strasburg handles things this spring.
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Is Stephen Strasburg the next great thing or the next Mark Prior?
Posted by Anthony Stalter (06/10/2009 @ 9:00 am)
After the Washington Nationals took San Diego State phenom Stephen Strasburg with the first overall pick of the 2009 MLB Draft, the first question that came to everyone’s mind was – will he sign?
Strasburg’s agent is Scott Boras, who is someone that would rather sell his mother on eBay than not overcharge a team for one of his client’s services. The pre-draft buzz was that Washington is willing to pay whatever it takes to sign Strasburg, but we’ll see what happens when the two sides actually come to the negotiating table.
The second question on everyone’s mind is – how good is this kid?
As a sophomore at SDS, he went 8-3 with a 1.57 ERA and struck out 133 batters in 97.5 innings of work. Four of his 13 starts that year were complete games and two were shutouts. Through May this season, he posted a 13-1 record with a 1.32 ERA and 195 strikeouts in 109 innings pitched.
The scouting report on Strasburg is eye-popping; his fastball tops out at 103 mph, his curve has excellent movement and his slider can clock in the 90s. If the Nationals absolutely needed him to pitch this season (which they don’t – there’s no reason to rush him), some believe that he’s even major-league ready now.
But there’s no such thing as a “can’t miss prospect” and Strasburg isn’t immune to criticism. Some believe he could be the next Mark Prior in that he’s injury prone because he puts too much pressure on his wrist and his elbow comes up too high in his release (which usually signals arm problems down the road). Throw in the pressure that comes along with being the No. 1 overall pick (not too mention a No. 1 pick who will eventually sign for $50-plus million) and all of a sudden you realize that transportation to bustville runs 24 hours a day.
Personally, I hope Strasburg lives up to the hype. The Nationals need him to be great and so does baseball, which is slowly starting to clean up its image. There has been a major buzz surrounding him and fans can’t wait to see him go toe to toe with major league hitters. Here’s hoping he has a bright and successful future ahead of him.
Posted in: MLB
Tags: 2009 MLB Draft, Mark Prior, Nationals rumors, Stephen Strasburg, Stephen Strasburg Mark Prior, Stephen Strasburg MLB draft, Stephen Strasburg Nationals, Stephen Strasburg No. 1 overall pick, Stephen Strasburg No. 1 pick, Stephen Strasburg rumors, Stephen Strasburg scouting report, Washington Nationals, Who did the Nationals take with the No. 1 overall pick, Who was drafted first in the MLB draft?
