Merry Strasmas: Stephen Strasburg Returns to the Washington Nationals and MLB

Stephen Strasburg is officially back in Major League Baseball. Twelve months and three days after having Tommy John surgery, “Strasmas” is being celebrated in Washington D.C. After making six truncated starts for the Nationals' minor league affiliates, Strasburg took the mound on a wet night in the Capital City. 

Many criticized the Nationals organization for bringing Strasburg back too quickly. Ironically, though, if you ask Nats fans, they’ll tell you this process has been anything but quick.

Strasburg’s outing was nothing short of dominant as he cruised through a Los Angeles Dodgers lineup which could be described as “bland” at best. 

His stat line: five innings, 17 total batters faced, two hits, four strikeouts, zero walks, zero earned runs and about 10 million collective sighs of relief that he competed the outing without wincing or twitching in pain.

Strasburg threw 56 pitches on the night, 40 of which were for strikes. He threw 44 fastballs (mixing four- and two-seamers), seven curveballs and five changeups. His two-seam fastball is a new addition; one he’s learned from Cy Young winner and mentor Roy Halladay. 

Straburg threw first pitch strikes to 14 of 17 batters and only fell behind two L.A. hitters on the night. He looked as if he’d been there for months, as he got ahead in counts, pitched to contact and finished off hitters on the ropes. His command was there all night as he painted inside and outside parts of the plate.  

It's widely known that the last thing that comes back to pitchers recovering from Tommy John is pitch control. Control has never been an issue during Strasburg’s short career. His uncanny ability to put 97 mph fastballs on the corners of the plate has made him the most touted young pitcher in baseball. During minor league rehab starts this year, Strasburg’s control was phenomenal. He faced 78 registered batters and only walked three, while striking out 29 of them.

In his rookie season he not only matched but rather exceeded his surrounding hype. In 12 starts, he pitched 68 innings, struck out 92 batters and walked only 17. He walked batters only six percent of the time, while striking out batters 33.5 percent of the time (274 batters faced/92 strikeouts). To put that in perspective, this year’s Cy Young candidate, Justin Verlander, strikes out batters 26 percent of the time.

During the last few weeks, as it became apparent that Strasburg would indeed pitch this season, many opinions and criticisms have been shared concerning this decision. 

ESPN writer Jayson Stark defended the Nationals, pointing out that they are not doing anything unusual here.

“This is where the rehab road leads all modern-day Tommy John surgery patients—back to the mound, 12 months after the doctors put their elbow back together,” he wrote. 

He gives examples: Edinson Volquez (12 months and two weeks), Tim Hudson (12 months and three weeks), Jordan Zimmermann (12 months and one week). Fellow teammate Jordan Zimmermann had the exact same journey as Strasburg did only it was not scrutinized under “Baseball Tonight’s microscope.”

It’s mind numbing to think so many “experts” could miss the obvious news that the minor league season ended days ago. 

Where is the Nationals ace supposed to pitch if not in Nationals Park? 

It’s also important to note that Strasburg will not be making any starts away from D.C. this season.  Washington GM Mike Rizzo has done an excellent job managing the health of the Nats' golden boy.  We’d all like to celebrate the holiday that is “Strasmas” for many years to come.