Stephen Strasburg's Strong Return Crucial Step for Not-So-Super Rotation

The super rotation has yet to be to this point in the season.

In fact, the only man who has lived up to the hype is the same one who sparked the "super" label in the first place when he agreed to pitch for the Washington Nationals in January. Max Scherzer has held up his end of the bargain, dominating on his way to being the National League's best pitcher.

As for the rest of the rotation, to call it average would be a serious reach.

That is why the Nationals needed Stephen Strasburg to provide hope upon his return from the disabled list, a trip that happened under unclear circumstances that were ultimately whittled down to a strained left trapezius muscle. What was certainly clear was Strasburg's ineffectiveness, illustrated by his 6.55 ERA and the fact that he hadn't pitched more than five innings in a start since April 30 before hitting the DL a month later.

Hope was one of the definite byproducts of Strasburg's first outing back against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday. The right-hander, a month from his 27th birthday, looked like a top-of-the-rotation starter for the first time since April 19, the only other time this season he's even resembled what was expected of him entering the year.

Strasburg pitched five innings, did not allow a run, struck out six and was hitting 98 mph with his fastball even in the fifth inning. The Nationals also won to extend their lead in the NL East to 2.5 games over the New York Mets.

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The line on Stephen Strasburg tonight: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K -- 94 pitches, 64 strikes. #WelcomeBackStras pic.twitter.com/Tw2CqaPgF9

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) June 24, 2015"

Strasburg came out of the start healthy, and his mechanics looked consistent. That's important because his delivery has proved problematic, leading to inconsistent landing spots, release points and command.

Nationals manager Matt Williams spoke to reporters about Strasburg's year before the game, per Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post:

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Anytime you step on the mound or to the plate or play defense and you're not 100 percent, you don't feel good, something wrong, it's never any fun. You end up thinking about that as opposed to executing whatever you're trying to do. So tonight it's important that one, that he feels good when he walks out there and he can let it go and let it fly and there aren't any restrictions, first and foremost. It's important for him to be able to throw it where he wants to.

"

Strasburg was able to do that against the Braves. Sixty-four of his 94 pitches were strikes, and he walked only one. Five of his six strikeouts came on well-located high fastballs.

He was also much better from the stretch, which had given him a myriad of problems prior to this start. In his previous 10, opponents hit .412/.457/.553 in 96 plate appearances with at least one man on base.

On Tuesday, the Braves were 0-for-8.

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Pitching out of the stretch, an issue before the DL, Strasburg gets inning-ending groundout. Wearing out the same landing spot on the mound.

— James Wagner (@JamesWagnerWP) June 24, 2015"

It is just one start, and Strasburg had been mostly hideous in his previous 10. But the Nationals have not had much else to sink their teeth into on days Scherzer does not pitch, so Strasburg's promising return has finally put some meat on the bone.

Jordan Zimmermann was supposed to be one of the best starters in baseball this season, but his command has been erratic, his strikeouts per nine innings are down from 8.2 last season to 6.4 and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is down from 6.28 to 3.16. Aside from Scherzer, he has the highest ERA+ of any Washington starter at 103; the league average is 100.

Doug Fister finished eighth in Cy Young Award voting last year after going 16-6 with a 2.41 ERA and career-high 152 ERA+. But he has missed time this season with forearm tightness and has a 4.80 ERA, 1.444 WHIP and 81 ERA+. In his first start after his DL stint, he allowed five runs on nine hits in 5.1 innings Thursday.

Gio Gonzalez was thought to be the best No. 5 starter in the majors, but he's been in steady decline since 2012 as his 88 ERA+ is his lowest since 2009.

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Given what Strasburg had done before Tuesday, it is needless to say this rotation has been maybe the biggest disappointment in the majors in 2015, contributing to the Nationals being among the most disappointing teams. The rotation is also a major reason why the Nats have yet to build a significant lead in the NL East over a flawed Mets team that is at .500 and an Atlanta Braves team that is supposed to be in rebuild mode and a game below .500.

Strasburg's promising return is meaningful. If he sustains this success going forward, the Nationals could still have one of the best rotation combinations in the league as playoff races heat up.

The starters likely will never live up to the preseason hype, but a healthy and effective Strasburg could still make the Nationals favorites in October.

All quotes, unless otherwise specified, have been acquired firsthand by Anthony Witrado. Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com Follow Anthony on Twitter @awitrado and talk baseball here.