Stephen Strasburg Wins NL Pitcher of the Month Award for April

Stephen Strasburg has been named the National League's Pitcher of the Month for April after stringing together five fantastic starts.

He went 2-0 in the month with an ERA of 1.13.

With a league-best 34 strikeouts and just six walks, Strasburg has clearly established himself as one of the premier pitchers in baseball.

This award proves it.

Jordan Zimmerman also received consideration for the award, as did Lance Lynn, Kyle Lohse, Joe Saunders, Ted Lilly, Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto.

While all of the aforementioned starters had great months, Strasburg left no doubt that deserved the award over the other candidates.

This is the first monthly honor of Strasburg's young career, but there's a good chance that he wins a few more before he retires several years down the line.

Strasburg headlines a young Nationals rotation, and he is a key contributor to the team's early season success in 2012.

The Nationals have proven to be a tough team to beat in 2012, and Strasburg will be key to the team sustaining that success for the rest of the season.

If he keeps pitching like this, the team may have to rethink that 160-innings limit they placed on him this offseason.