A lot of baseball fans will remember the name Mark Prior. He was a young right-hander out of USC that burst on to the scene in 2003 with the Chicago Cubs. He made 30 starts that season, finished 18-6 with a 2.43 ERA and struck out an eye-popping 245 batters.
Prior was never the same after that, and after battling injuries through the next three seasons he hasn't seen a major league mound since 2006. He's signed a few minor league deals with the San Diego Padres but every time he had gained some momentum, a set back would occur and he'd be shut down once again. He vows to be back pitching again in the big leagues, but at this point it looks unlikely.
Now, in 2010, a new phenom has popped up. He was the number one overall draft pick of the Washington Nationals. He turned just about every scout's head through his college career at San Diego State playing under Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn. He throws over 100 MPH consistently and he's been labeled as the savior of the Nationals' franchise. His name is Stephen Strasburg.
What needs to be understood from the Nationals standpoint is how not to turn him in to the next Mark Prior. There's excitement in Washington DC over this young phenom but if they are not cautious about when and how they bring him up to the big leagues, they could pitch him right out of the big leagues in just a few short years.
Strasburg could learn a lot of from another hard throwing pitcher like Randy Johnson, who was able to sustain a long and successful career that included a world series championship.
The young 21-year old, soon to be 22 in July, made his first official start for the Nationals on Tuesday against the Detroit Tigers. He threw 27 pitches, 15 for strikes, through two scoreless innings and apparently made an impact not only on his own manager but Tigers' third baseman Miguel Cabrera.
“His fastball was jumping,” Cabrera told Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports . “He’s got a good chance for success in the big leagues.”
Getting a compliment like that would get into the heads of most young pitchers out there, but Strasburg seems to go about his day knowing that he has a long way to go before he'll be a true major league pitcher.
Most fans came out to Viera, FL to see the velocity that so many have talked about, to see him ramp his fastball above 100 MPH and make the catcher's hand swell to three times it's normal size, but Strasburg took it easy, if you call it that, in his first start. He did however hit 98 a few times on the gun and worked in a nasty curveball as well as changeup.
When asked about his famous velocity, Strasburg kept it in perspective, already sounding like a veteran. “Velocity isn’t everything, he told Henson. "Big league hitters can hit a good plus-plus fastball over the heart of the plate. It’s all about location.”
Exactly the attitude that's going to make this young pitcher not only affective but perhaps a tad crafty as well.
Will will see Stephen Strasburg in the big leagues at some point, but right now caution and patience will be needed from the Nationals. He's the biggest prize in the franchise; lose him and baseball will go right back to being less than mediocre in the nation's capital.
Play the cards right and this young pitcher could turn the Nationals into a legitimate contender in the next few years.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments