Stephen Strasburg Reflects on Injuries, $245M Nationals Contract: Felt Like I Failed

As Stephen Strasburg prepares for his life in retirement, he still has some feelings to work through about his career.

The Washington Nationals former ace pitcher is currently in the process of moving away from his former home and relocating to San Diego as he prepares for his post-playing career. While he is looking forward to this new chapter, he did acknowledge the "inner turmoil" and feelings of failure that come with the lackluster end of his career.

"When you're dealing with a lot of emotions and inner turmoil, to where it's like — I wouldn't say I was really beating myself up, but I didn't feel good about it," Strasburg said, per Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post. "I felt like I — you know, I failed. I didn't accomplish what was asked of me."

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Strasburg did experience significant levels of success in his career. The 2009 No. 1 pick compiled an overall record of 113-61, was a three-time All-Star and won the 2019 World Series MVP after guiding the Nationals to its first championship in franchise history.

His performance in that 2019 postseason was epic. He went 5-0 overall, including a 2-0 record with a 2.51 ERA in the World Series alone. He threw 36.1 innings total in the postseason, which came after he went 18-6 in the regular season and he was rewarded for this with a new seven-year, $245 million contract.

It wouldn't be necessarily fair to say he underperformed that contract, as he truly never got the chance. He only made eight more appearances for Washington after signing that contract due to injuries and eventually retired due to his inability to stay healthy.

He said that not fulfilling that contract has significantly weighed on him.

"You can say contract, whatever," Strasburg said, per Svrluga. "But it was more like: This was the expectation, and this is what I had in my mind. I worked my butt off, and it's like, I got to the point where I couldn't do any more, and it just wasn't attainable. That really wears on your psyche."

While his career was not given the chance to reach the significant heights he and Washington hoped for, he still did get the chance to have his moment and fulfill the goal of bringing the Nationals a World Series.