Stephen Strasburg

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Stephen James Strasburg

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Biographical Information[edit]

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Stephen Strasburg is arguably the most celebrated young pitcher to enter the major league scene since Texas's David Clyde back in 1973. Surprisingly, he was not a top-rated prospect coming out of high school, but became an amateur sensation while attending San Diego State University. Strasburg was the #1 overall pick in the 2009 amateur draft and was the lone amateur on the US Olympic team in 2008.

Strasburg was 1-0 in the 2008 World University Championship, allowing only 2 hits and no runs in 14 innings, walking 3 and whiffing 22. He led the event in strikeouts, 4 ahead of Yuki Saito, and helped the US win Gold. He also pitched the most innings of anyone who did not allow an earned run.

Strasburg was the only amateur chosen for Team USA for the 2008 Olympics. He shut down the Dutch national team to one hit (a Sharnol Adriana single) and one walk in 7 innings while fanning 11 in a win. He was less effective in the semifinals, allowing 2 runs in the third inning to the Cuban national team and a solo homer to Alfredo Despaigne in the 4th en route to a loss to Norge Vera. The US finished with Bronze. Strasburg was 1-1 with a 1.64 ERA in Beijing, striking out 16 in 11 innings.

Strasburg was reportedly signed by scout Mark Baca for four years and $15.1 million with the Washington Nationals in 2009, after being picked first overall in the amateur draft. Represented by super agent Scott Boras, he stretched negotiations to the very limit before signing for the record bonus.

He impressed all observers during the Nationals' spring training in 2010, but the team's top brass did not want to have him start his pro career straight in the major leagues, so he went to the minors to start the season. In his pro debut for the AA Harrisburg Senators of the Eastern League, he struck out eight in five innings on April 11 and hit 100 mph on the radar gun. He allowed four runs, but only one of them was earned, on a first-inning double by Alex Presley and single by Miles Durham. He also doubled in a run while facing Rudy Owens. After the game, Strasburg joked "I'm going to call [college coach Tony] Gwynn up tomorrow and let him have it" for not having Stephen bat during his collegiate career. He dominated competition in both AA and AAA over the first two months of the season, and it was clearly just a matter of time before he would pitch in the big leagues.

Stephen Strasburg pitches in his debut game

Strasburg was called up by the Nationals in June 2010 and made his big league debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 8th amidst a media frenzy. In 7 innings, he struck out 14, one shy of the record for a debut, set by J.R. Richard and Karl Spooner. He walked none and allowed four hits, including a two-run homer by Delwyn Young, in a win against Jeff Karstens. The 14 Ks were a record for a Nationals pitcher since the team's move to Washington in 2005 and would not be topped until Max Scherzer recorded 16 on June 14, 2015. In his next start against the Cleveland Indians on June 13th, Strasburg struck out 8 batters in 5 1/3 innings in picking up another win, giving him 22 Ks for the first 12 1/3 innings of his major league career. He also issued his first 5 walks and gave up another homer for the lone run he allowed, a solo shot by Travis Hafner. He was named the National League's Player of the Week in recognition of his two excellent starts. In his third game, on June 18th, facing the Chicago White Sox, he struck out 10 more batters to set a record with 32 over his first three starts; the previous mark had been held by Richard with 29. He was not involved in the decision as the Nats lost 2-1, in 11 innings. He suffered his first loss on June 23rd in spite of another dominant start against the Kansas City Royals in which he gave up only one run and struck out 9 batters in 6 innings, but lost 1-0. He got his first major league hit off winner Brian Bannister and after the game, his K/W ratio stood at 41-5. His 41 strikeouts beat the 40 recorded by Herb Score in 1955 for most by a pitcher in his first 4 career starts.

On July 27th, he was scratched out of a scheduled start because of shoulder tightness; the Nationals announced immediately that he would undergo an MRI. He returned to action shortly thereafter, but on August 21st, he left a game in the 5th inning with a strained tendon in his right forearm, leading to another MRI and his being placed on the disabled list. The MRI uncovered a tear in the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, meaning that he would need to undergo Tommy John surgery and likely miss a year of action. For the year, he went 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 12 starts and was named to the 2010 Topps All-Star Rookie Team in spite of his shortened season, the voters having felt that he had displayed enough brilliance in his short stint in the majors to earn the honor.

The surgery was performed on September 3rd, and, on schedule, he began throwing off a mound for the first time in a bullpen session on May 23rd the following year, with the target of being back in the majors at the start of the 2012 season. That said, his recovery from the surgery was remarkably fast, as the Nats scheduled him for a first rehabilitation appearance with the Class A Hagerstown Suns on August 7th, setting him up for a potential return to the major leagues in September - six months ahead of schedule. He only threw 31 pitches in his return to the mound against the Greensboro Grasshoppers, striking out 4 in 1 2/3 innings; both his control and velocity were excellent. After four starts in Class A, during which he went 0-1, 6.75, he moved up to AAA Syracuse on August 27th and showed some of the previous year's flash, pitching 5 perfect innings against the Rochester Red Wings while consistently throwing his fastball in the mid-90s before giving up a one-out single to Steve Holm in the 6th inning. He was then removed from the game, having reached his pitch count limit. He made his return to the major leagues on September 6th, pitching 5 scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers; he left with a 3-0 lead, but his teammates were unable to hold it, losing 7-3. He capped a remarkable comeback season by earning his only big league win of the year on the season's last day, September 28th, when he shut out the Florida Marlins for 6 innings while striking out 10. His teammates then managed to keep the lead and won the game, 3-1, in the last game played by the Marlins under the "Florida" moniker, and the last game in Sun Life Stadium.

He was healthy when he showed up for spring training with the Nationals in 2012, but manager Davey Johnson indicated that he would limit his innings to around 150-160, following a path set the previous year for teammate Jordan Zimmermann. However, that did not prevent the Nats from handing him the assignment as the Opening Day starter for the first time of his career. He won his first game of the season on April 11th, defeating the New York Mets at Citi Field on the 50th anniversary of the Mets' first game; he pitched 6 scoreless innings in a 4-0 win, throwing a career-high 108 pitches. He then capped an excellent first month by winning the National League's Pitcher of the Month honors. He was 2-0, 1.13 while leading the circuit with 34 strikeouts; he allowed 4 earned runs all month over 5 starts, all of which were quality starts. He hit his first major league home run on May 20th at Nationals Park, driving a pitch from the Baltimore Orioles' Wei-Yin Chen into the left field bullpen, immediately following a homer by catcher Jesus Flores. He left that game after only five innings, complaining of arm fatigue, but still was credited with his team's 9-3 win. He reached 200 career strikeouts in his 29th career start, tying for 5th-fastest to 200 Ks since 1900, after Hideo Nomo (23 starts), Kerry Wood (23), Dwight Gooden (25) and Mark Prior (27) and even with Herb Score (29). He also became the first major leaguer to 100 strikeouts that season, doing so in a 5-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on June 13th, even though the Nationals were being very prudent with him and trying to limit his innings and pitch counts as much as possible. Indeed, when he left that game, he had pitched only 77 innings in 13 starts, but those were of extremely high quality, as attested by his 8-1 record, 2.45 ERA, and 60 hits allowed. He had only walked 20 batters when he reached triple figures in strikeouts, showing excellent control on top of his tremendous stuff. As a result of his excellent first half, he got to pitch in the 2012 All-Star Game, but the question of his innings limit began to loom bigger. In mid-July, former pitcher John Smoltz offered him a bit of unsolicited advice, stating that he should fake an injury to cause him to miss playing time in July and August, in order to have innings remaining in the bank for a possible pennant race and postseason run in September and October. General Manager Mike Rizzo then explained that he alone would make that call, and that there was no preset number of innings. On September 2nd, however, Johnson announced that Strasburg had only two starts left and would make his last appearance on September 12th. But when Strasburg was roughed up in his next outing against the Miami Marlins on September 7th, the Nationals announced that he had in fact just made his last start of the season, ending the year at 15-6, 3.16, with 197 strikeouts in 159 1/3 innings. As a result of this decision, he missed the Nationals first-ever appearance in the postseason, and Washington was forced to use journeyman Edwin Jackson for one start as they were upset in five games by the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLDS. That result only made critics of the decision to shut him down louder.

Strasburg was back pitching for the Nats on Opening Day on April 1, 2013, and he was at his best, allowing 3 hits and no walks to the Marlins in 7 shutout innings. Bryce Harper backed him up by hitting a pair of solo homers, and the Nationals won, 2-0. He continued to pitch well but lost his next four starts, as the Nats were unable to generate any offense to help him win - his ERA was a solid 3.16 at that point. On April 29th, he gave up only 2 runs in 6 innings in a no-decision against the Atlanta Braves, but looked out of sorts, continually shaking his arm while on the mound, and then complaining of tightness in his forearm. It turned out to be a false alert, however, as he missed no time and on May 16th, had the longest outing of his career thus far, going 8 innings in beating the San Diego Padres, 6 - 2. It was his first career start in his hometown. On May 31st, he had more trouble, leaving a start against the Braves in the 2nd inning because of more discomfort caused by muscle tightness. His lack of wins and the Nats' disappointing performance meant that he was not selected for the 2013 All-Star Game in spite of an excellent 2.99 ERA in the first half. On August 11th, he threw his first career complete game and shutout, throwing a four-hitter at the Philadelphia Phillies in a 6-0 win. In his next start on August 11th against the Braves, however, he was warned by home plate umpire Marvin Hudson after hitting Justin Upton with a pitch in the 1st inning, immediately after a home run by Jason Heyward; in the 2nd, he walked lead-off hitter Jordan Schafer then threw two pitches behind the head of Andrelton Simmons and was ejected by Hudson, along with manager Davey Johnson, who came out to argue. Bryce Harper had been hit by Braves' pitches twice the day before and was out of the line-up as a result, which may have explained Strasburg's aggressiveness. He ended up with a record of 8-9 and an ERA of 3.00 in 30 starts, pitching 183 innings.

Strasburg was the National League strikeout leader in 2014, with 242 strikeouts in 215 innings, with both numbers a personal best. He went 14-11, 3.14 in 34 starts as the Nationals won the NL East title for the second time in three years; the big difference was of course that this time, he was available to pitch in the postseason. He started Game 1 of the Division Series against the San Francisco Giants and was charged with a 3-2 loss after giving up 2 runs in 5 innings. In 2015, the Nationals started the season red hot, but not Strasburg. After 9 starts, his record was only 3-5, and worse, his ERA was a bloated 6.50. He was still striking out a batter per inning, but giving up a ton of hits - 62 in 44 1/3 innings. In his 10th start on May 30th, he lasted only 16 pitches, being removed with a physical problem after walking the first batter he faced in the 2nd. The injury was later described as a tight muscle in his neck. He had left a game with tightness behind his shoulder in a previous game; he was immediately placed on the disabled list, the team thinking the two problems may have been related. He returned on June 23rd, and quickly won his first two starts after that, but then made only one outing in July. He returned for good in early August, and won three of his first four starts as he began to scale his ERA down to a more respectable level. On September 15th, he pitched his best game of the year when he defeated the Phillies 4-0, allowing just one hit in 8 innings and striking out 14 opponents in the process. Unfortunately, he was getting into gear at a time the Nationals had been run out of the postseason race by a very hot New York Mets team. The strikeouts matched his career-best, set in his major league debut; Blake Treinen pitched the last inning, costing him a chance to set a new mark. He finished the year at 11-7, 3.46, but had a 1.90 ERA over the second half. After the season, he had a non-cancerous growth surgically removed from his back.

Strasburg began the 2016 season where he had left off the previous year, as he was unbeaten over the first two months of the campaign. A 10-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on May 29th improved his record to 9-0, also giving him 12 consecutive wins dating back to the previous September. The 12 consecutive wins tied a franchise record shared by Dennis Martinez (1989) and Livan Hernandez (2005); he was also the first starting pitcher to win his first nine decisions of a season, besting the mark of 8 set by Pedro Martinez in 1997. On June 4th, he recorded the 1,000th strikeout of his career in a start against the Cincinnati Reds, but then limped off the mound after giving up a two-run homer to Joey Votto following a rain delay in the 6th. He ended up with a no-decision, keeping his personal winning streak alive, although the Nats lost the game, after being victorious in his previous 15 starts. He returned on June 10th to win his 13th straight, 9-6 over the Phillies. After a no-decision in his following start, he was placed on the disabled list retroactive to June 16th with a strain in his upper back. He came back on July 3rd with an outstanding performance, as he went 6 2/3 innings against the Reds without allowing a hit, before being removed from the game. Matt Belisle eventually gave up a single to Ramon Cabrera leading off the 8th to end the bid for a combined no-hitter, but Stephen was a 12-1 winner to improve to 11-0 on the year. He then became the first National League pitcher since Rube Marquard in 1912 to begin a season with a 12-0 record. To no one's surprise, he was named to the All-Star team for the second time, but he declined to participate in the game given his recent back issues and ceded his spot to teammate Max Scherzer. Strasburg's winning streak finally came to an end on July 21st, after 16 straight wins, when he lost 6-3 to the Los Angeles Dodgers to fall to 13-1 on the year; he was victimized by Justin Turner, who homered twice off him and drove in 5 runs. On July 27th, however, he claimed a share of the major league lead for wins with his 14th, acquired thanks to 7 scoreless innings against the Cleveland Indians. He then became the first 15-game winner in the majors with a 14-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on August 1st. He was named the NL's Pitcher of the Month for July, his second time claiming the honor, after going 4-1, 2.08 with 37 strikeouts but only 15 hits allowed in 34 2/3 innings. He went on the DL a second time on August 22nd, this time with a sore elbow. He returned on September 7th but left the game only 42 pitches into his start against the Braves after feeling pain in his elbow again. The diagnostic was a strained flexor mass, with rest and rehab prescribed. While no surgery was required, this development meant that he was not available for the postseason as the Nationals made another early exit, losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Division Series. He finished the season at 15-4, 3.60 in 24 starts.

On May 27, 2017, he set a personal mark by striking out 15 batters in a 3-0 win over the San Diego Padres. He was named to the All-Star team for the third time, but was not used in the game and went on the disabled list after leaving a start after two innings on July 23rd. After missing almost a month of action, he returned on August 19th, facing the Padres. He allowed a pair of 1st-inning runs, which eventually resulted in his being charged with a 3-1 loss, but also kept the Padres off the scoreboard for the next five innings, beginning a scoreless streak that eventually reached a club-record 35 innings before being ended in the 2nd inning of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 17th. That run was the only blip in a 7-1 win that gave him four straight winning starts and improved his record to 14-4, to go along with an ERA of 2.60. He was named the NL Pitcher of the Month for September after finishing the month at 4-0, 0.83 with 40 Ks in 32 2/3 innings. For the year, he was 15-4, 2.52. He started Game 1 of the Division Series against the Chicago Cubs on October 6th and kept them hitless until two outs in the 6th, when he gave up a single to Kris Bryant that scored Javier Baez, who had reached on an error, from second base; Anthony Rizzo followed with another run-scoring hit and it was enough for Chicago, which won the game, 3-0, in spite of his great performance. In Game 4 on October 11th, he was even better, pitching 7 scoreless innings and striking out 12 to receive credit for a 5-0 win, his first career postseason victory. However, the Nats lost Game 5 and were once again eliminated without getting past the Division Series obstacle. After the season, he said that he would consider declining any future invitation to partake in the All-Star Game, as he felt that changing his routine in order to attend had led to the injury that had affected him just afterwards.

In 2018, he went 10-7, 3.74 in 22 starts, missing time once again due to injuries. He struck out 156 batters in 130 innings as the Nationals had a disappointing season and missed the postseason altogether. On May 2, 2019, he recorded his 1,500th strikeout. He was the quickest pitcher to reach the milestone in terms of innings pitched, as he did so in 1,272 1/3 innings, beating the previous mark of 1,290 inning set by Chris Sale. He reached another career mark on June 4th, when he recorded his 100th career win in a 9-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox. On July 3rd, he started off a game against the Miami Marlins with an immaculate inning - striking out the first three batters on 9 pitches - on his way to striking out 14 in 7 1/3 innings. He did not give up a run, but still almost ended up with a no-decision, as the bullpen almost coughed up a 3-0 lead, with Sean Doolittle saving the win by striking out Yadiel Rivera with the bases loaded. It was his 10th win of the season. On July 18th, he had a great day at the plate in a 13-4 win over the Atlanta Braves: he led off the 3rd with a single off Kyle Wright before scoring Atlanta's first run on a triple by Adam Eaton. The Nationals batted around in the inning, and he next faced Touki Toussaint and connected for a 420-foot three-run homer. Then in the 5th, he hit a two-run single. He became the first Nationals pitcher with two hits in an inning and also the first with 5 RBIs in a game. All that hitting and baserunning took a toll as he had to leave after 5 1/3 innings, having allowed 3 runs on 8 hits, but his bat had contributed to a huge lead and he was the winner, improving to 12-4 on the year. On July 28th, he became the first pitcher in the majors with 14 wins when he defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 11-4. He was named the NL Pitcher of the Month for July after finishing the month at 5-0, 1.14 with 44 Ks in 31 2/3 innings. On August 9th, he recorded his 1,622nd strikeout, thereby passing Steve Rogers for the all-time Expos/Nationals franchise lead in the category. He finished the year at 18-6, 3.32, leading the NL in wins and innings pitched (209). He was brilliant in the postseason, going a combined 5-0 with at least one win in each of the four rounds of playoffs. In fact, he was the dfirst pitcher to go a perfect 5-0 in a single postseason. He was 2-0, 2.51 in 2 World Series starts against the Houston Astros and was named the winner of the World Series MVP Award as the Nationals won their first-ever title.

The day after the World Series, Strasburg declined the option on the remaining four years of his contract, making him a free agent. He let it be known however that he was open to returning at the right price, while the Nats also let it be known they were interested in bringing him back, but that it would be difficult to re-sign both him and MVP candidate Anthony Rendon. On December 9th, news leaked out that the two sides had come to an agreement on a seven-year extension worth $245 million. This was the most total money committed to a pitcher, beating David Price's contract of $217 million, and the highest average yearly salary for a pitcher at $35 million (Zack Greinke's contract averaged $34.4 per annum). However, these did not stay records for long, as the contract awarded two days later by the New York Yankees to Gerrit Cole topped both figures. Strasburg's first season under the new contract did not go as the Nationals would have liked, however, as he missed the start of the delayed season and only made his first appearance on August 9th, losing 6-2 to the Baltimore Orioles. He made only one other start, on August 14th also against the Orioles, but had to leave the game in the 1st inning with an injury and was immediately placed on the injured list. On August 22nd, the Nationals announced that he had a carpal tunnel problem in his right hand that would require surgery and that he would miss the remainder of the season.

He finally made his return to the mound on June 9, 2022, starting against the Miami Marlins. Things did not go great, as he gave up 7 runs on 8 hits in 4 2/3 innings to be charged with a 7-4 loss, but at least he was back after missing almost a full year of action. The Marlins had not won a game against him since 2015. But after his next bullpen session, he felt discomfort and went back on the injured list on June 13th. He did not pitch again that season, and not in 2023 either. By then, rumors started circulating that his injuries were career-ending and on August 24th that year, an Associated Press story stated that he had decided to retire and would hold a press conference to that effect before the end of the season. Word leaked out that a ceremony was being planned by the Nats, but that it was put on hold when disagreements came up between Strasburg and the team on how to handle deferred salary payments due him. While this is normally only a minor issue, the complicating factors were that the amount still due Strasburg was huge, and that the Nats had not insured the contract, so were on the hook for all of it. Thus they wanted to negotiate some sort of rebate, which likely led to dissatisfaction on the pitcher's park, and leaks regarding the process. His retirement was finally made official on April 7, 2024, almost two years after his last appearance in a game.

Overall, Strasburg went 113-62 in 247 games - all starts - spread out over 13 seasons, with an ERA of 3.24. And while many of these seasons were cut short by injuries, he still managed to win in double figures seven times and to lead the National League in wins, innings and strikeouts on different occasions. He may not have had the all-time great career that was expected of him in college, but his career winning percentage of .646 was outstanding. And no one could take away his amazing performance in leading the Nationals to their first-ever championship in 2019.

Notable Achievements[edit]

Further Reading[edit]

  • Jack Baer: "Nationals call leaks about Stephen Strasburg's potential retirement 'regrettable'", Yahoo! Sports, September 8, 2023. [1]
  • Jessica Camerato: "Report: Strasburg further set back with 'severe nerve damage'", mlb.com, June 3, 2023. [2]
  • Jessica Camerato: "Strasburg, postseason record-setter and WS MVP, retires from MLB", mlb.com, April 7, 2024. [3]
  • Scott Chiusano: "2019 World Series MVP Strasburg plans to retire (source)", mlb.com, August 24, 2023. [4]
  • Howard Fendrich and Stephen Whyno (Associated Press): "World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg has decided to retire, AP source says", Yahoo! Sports, August 24, 2023. [5]
  • Alyson Footer: "Strasburg to Nationals on record 7-year deal", mlb.com, December 9, 2019. [6]
  • Gabe Lacques: "'Embrace it': Stephen Strasburg's legendary postseason hits its apex with gritty Game 2 win", USA Today, October 24, 2019. [7]
  • Gabe Lacques; "How Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg developed into MVP of World Series", USA Today, October 31, 2019. [8]
  • Gabe Lacques: "Back with Nationals for $245 million, 'underappreciated superstar' Stephen Strasburg looks to the future", USA Today, December 17, 2019. [9]
  • Bob Nightengale: "Stephen Strasburg has agreed to seven-year, $245M deal to stay with Washington Nationals", USA Today, December 9, 2019. [10]

Related Sites[edit]

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