Pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg made headlines even before he threw a baseball professionally. Everybody knew who this kid was before he made it to the Majors. So far, when healthy, he has lived up to expectations and proven that he can pitch and compete with the best hurlers and against the best sluggers. Are the Washington Nationals really considering limiting his season?
Unlike 2010 and 2011, the Washington Nationals are in competition for a pennant. They are in first place in the toughest division in baseball and currently hold a 2.5 lead over the Miami Marlins and New York Mets. Not to mention they have the third best record in all of baseball behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers.
Even though they are having a successful season, the Nationals have already mentioned that they will sideline Strasburg. CBS Columnist, Jon Heyman has said he doubts it will happen, but has heard the Nats want to limit their young pitcher to 160 innings.
At the rate Strasburg is throwing innings, this means that by August he will not be active.
This prompts many questions, but a main one in particular, what are the Nationals playing for?
The Nationals are so preoccupied with the health of their young starter that they are willing to not compete in 2012. Pulling Strasburg from the starting rotation means they will pull themselves out of the playoff picture.
Teams like the Atlanta Braves, Miami Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies are only expected to get better. The Phillies will get their two sluggers back at some point before their season is over. Granted that they have not been playing well, they are still in the picture just four games back.
The Atlanta Braves have hit a bump on the road losing 8 straight games, but their offense is going through some injuries and their pitching has been struggling as of late.
The Washington Nationals have a great young team and the addition of Gio Gonzalez has given them a great pitching rotation. There is no reason why the Nationals should flirt with the idea of sitting a great pitcher like Strasburg especially when they are in first place. It makes them look like they are not serious about winning.
The Nationals have invested a lot on Strasburg and yes, he is coming off Tommy John surgery, but if nothing is wrong with him then why sit him out knowing that your team needs him every five days?
In the past, teams have tried protecting their superstar flamethrowers. What pitching coaches and teams should do is focus more on bettering their young players' pitching mechanics rather than sitting them out and not allowing their arms to build strength.
The Texas Rangers have taken pride in letting their starters pitch go for as long as they can. They do not believe in inning limits, let alone believing in a pitch count. Teams should begin looking at this model because the Rangers have some of the best starting pitching in baseball.
The Washington Nationals have the best ERA in baseball. Without a doubt, Strasburg is a big part of this success. He is 5-1 with a 2.64 ERA in 10 starts. The worst thing the Nationals could do to themselves is sit their phenom. They have to protect him, but they have to allow him to grow.
If he is healthy they should let him pitch.
It is too early to tell if the Nationals will remain as one of the hottest teams in baseball this season, but the thought of them shutting down one of their best pitchers automatically questions their intensions of winning, making them pretenders.
A team has to stay healthy to win, but taking out one of your best players while in the hunt for a pennant means you are not serious about winning a championship.