It's is the top of the 8th in Washington and Strasburg has just punched out the side to end his much anticipated Major League debut versus the Pittsburg Pirates for the Nationals. The score is 4-2 and after 14 total strikeouts, Strasburg's start was nothing short of legendary. He set a Nationals franchise record for K's in a debut after going 7 innings, giving up only four total hits, 2 earned runs, and the 14 K's mentioned previously. His stuff was "as advertised." The gun on MASN has his fastball at 93 - 103 MPHs. (The gun was probably juiced a few ticks, but still no doubt he was hitting triple digits) His curveball was a knee buckling 82 MPH and the slider and change-up were equally devastating. More than once, as Pirates hitters were gearing up for another heater, Strasburg would drop in that hammer and buckle the knees of those Big League hitters. Most of those strike-outs were wild swings and misses on super heaters and exploding breaking stuff.
So it almost doesn't even need to be said that Strasburg is good. Truly, the only question that remains is 'Will Strasburg be the perennial All-Star that everyone expects him to be?' While I'm not fortune teller, I do consider myself an expert on the subject of pitching. Without attempting to tell the future, I think the answer to that question is a resounding yes. The main reason for my confidence in the phenom is found in his delivery. Very few guys are able to replicate such incredible velocity with such poise and apparent ease. Who knows, he could blow out his arm tomorrow, but I'm not betting on it. When compared to other 100 mph fireballers, Stephen has the smoothest, most fluid delivery of all of them. Other pitchers in this category are guys like Ubaldo Jimenez, Justin Verlander, Joel Zamaya, and perhaps old-schooler, Nolan Ryan. Of those, only Nolan Ryan rivaled Strasburg's apparent lack of "effort." All of the others appear to be trying to throw that hard. On the contrary, he is smooth loose and the only thing that is violent is the ball exploding into the catcher's glove. These facts tell me that Strasburg has mastered the art of staying loose and under control and allow the lower half to do the work for you. The ultimate thesis behind the Less Is More philosophy.
So going forward, I look forward to seeing what becomes of Mr. Strasburg. It is my prediction that he will be an All-Star by next year. Plus, if Bryce Harper turns out to be the offensive stud that everyone say he is, then the Nationals could be led by two no. 1 draft picks all the way to the 2015 World Series. A bold prediction, but I'll stand by it as long as those two are healthy.
I look forward to five days from now to see Strasburg start again. Look for a Big Leaguer Breakdown on him fairly soon.
Until Next Time
Image By Geoff Burke, U.S. Presswire
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