That's easy for me to say...sitting on the couch, sipping a beer, and mulling over my next meal. Given the track record of teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels and Phillies, I find it hard to believe they won't sit him down and slide over a contract of some astronomical value to lure him their way. The Nationals will have the opportunity to match any offer if they feel they can afford it, or even if they feel he's worth it. My opinion of this matter is not expert by any means, but I can assure you I did the research and crunched the numbers to base it off of. Here's what I've come up with...
Strasburg was quite possibly the most hyped player coming out of college and the minor leagues. This was for good reason, considering the stats were downright intimidating. When you see the minor league numbers, and notice the 2011 numbers where his ERA spiked up for 3 starts, just remember this was following his surgery and nearly a one-year layoff from pitching. You can't blame the guy for needing to shake off the rust.
The surgery I'm referring to is of course Tommy John Surgery, which if you don't know much about, it is possibly the most revolutionary procedure to bring an injured athlete back to playing shape. There are a couple of downfalls, like the 12-18 months it takes to recover or the possibility of needing multiple procedures, but more often than not, the end result has all but proven to benefit the recipients after a full recovery.
Strasburg has proven he is no exception to that trend. He has lowered his career ERA and raised his winning percentage since returning, and is currently leading the National League in strikeouts. This is especially intriguing since the Nationals' front office is limiting Strasburg's innings pitched for the season.
That fact leads me to one of my main arguments. This year, the Nationals are a surprise division leader/playoff contender, and are showing no signs of slowing down. With an 11-4 record, he is clearly doing his part. The problem is once he nears the 160 innings-pitched mark for the season, they will consider shutting him down for the rest of the regular season. Their main concern is the health of their star pitcher. Although I do understand their reasoning, I do not agree with that decision whatsoever.
First of all, he has shown no sign of strain or pain. If there was some tightness or discomfort in any way, I'd be the first to say take the time to get him back to 100%. Otherwise, I'm keeping my best pitcher in the rotation. At the current pace, Strasburg will hit the 160 inning mark by the end of August or very early September. With the division race as tight as it is right now, only to get more intense down the stretch, they want to pull their most talented commodity in the fear that he might hurt himself? Every player that steps on the field on a daily basis runs that risk. They're making a big deal of nothing. He's not the first player to ever have the surgery, and none of these other pitchers have had this restriction forced on them. Consider this possibility: what if the Nationals lose the division and miss the wild card due to a poor finish to September? Clearly it's not one player that would change that outcome alone, but one could argue that it could be a major contributing factor. I wouldn't want to take that risk.
Knowing how I am as an athlete and a competitor, the last thing I would ever want is to sit on the bench when I know I could be doing more to assist my team in winning. If Strasburg does not feel that way, then he deserves to be on the bench, but judging by the numbers, it's obvious he wants to win. I'm wondering if he's keeping the peace with the front office until free agency comes along. That's what I'd be doing. Pace myself, go out there and do what I'm paid to do, then when I'm on the market, test the waters a little. See who may be willing to give me a boatload of cash while not holding me back in the process. It would be a shame to have to wait until 2017 (when he is eligible), but where's the harm in window shopping at the very least?
Even though it is too early to say definitively, it is possible that holding him back could come back to bite them later. Unless this team remains a true threat to win the World Series in the next few years, the Nationals could be making a bad decision for their long term success. It won't be the first poor decision made by management of a DC sports franchise (see Daniel Snyder).
It's refreshing to see a team like this show promise, so it would be a damn shame to see that fade away. Let's hope, for the sake of good old-fashioned, hard-nosed baseball, that they know what they're doing.
D.
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