Strasburg the Phenom

[BaseballUmp]

This kid seems like the real deal given he is facing the Pirates, but hes got 14 K's 4 hits and 2 ER's through 7 innings!

[Looking4number8]

Originally posted by BaseballUmp
hes got 14 K's through 7 innings!
wow!

[LE Dad]

Wow!! They are goning to let him pitch a deep into the game. Everyone kept saying 4-5 innings tops.

[BaseballUmp]

He was on a 80-90 pitch limit and ended up throwing 94 hurling it 97 mph his first pitch and even touching 100!

[IrishTex]

Stephen Strasburg lives up to hype in debut for Nationals with 14 strikeouts, first win

http://i.usatoday.net/communitymanager/_photos/daily-pitch/2010/06/08/steviefansx-wide-community.jpg

WASHINGTON – Believe the hype.

Stephen Strasburg, the $15.1 million pitching phenom, lived up to expectations Tuesday night as the Washington Nationals right-hander dominated the Pittsburgh Pirates with a franchise-record 14 strikeouts in his major-league debut and picked up his first victory, 5-2.

He finished with seven consecutive strikeouts and allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings, leaving a sell-out crowd at Nationals Park buzzing.

http://i.usatoday.net/communitymanager/_photos/daily-pitch/2010/06/08/steviescorex-inset-community.jpg

He missed the record for strikeouts in a debut by one, trailing the Brooklyn Dodgers' Karl Spooner, who did it Sept. 22, 1954, vs. the New York Giants, and the Houston Astros' J.R. Richard who achieved the feat against the San Francisco Giants on Sept 5, 1971.

Strasburg, 21, from San Diego State, didn't walk a batter and left with the Nationals leading 4-2.

Strasburg has been super-hyped since the Nationals made him the first overall pick in the 2009 June draft. After going 7-2 with a 1.43 ERA at Class AA and AAA this season, he arrived in D.C. as advertised.

Strasburg's fastball hit 100 mph several times. He threw devastating breaking pitches and kept his cool when he gave up two singles to start the fourth inning.

The Pirates' Neil Walker and Lastings Milledge started the fourth inning with consecutive singles. Strasburg got Garrett Jones to ground into a double play but then gave up a home run to right field by Delwyn Young, giving the Pirates a 2-1 lead.

Strasburg retired the Pirates, who came into the game with the fewest runs scored (187) in the National League, in order in the fifth inning.

He struck out the side in the sixth and seventh innings as Nationals Park rocked with excitement.


Source (http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2010/06/washington-nationals-stephen-strasburg-major-league-debut/1)

[IrishTex]

While hype surrounds Strasburg, Reds' Leake toils in obscurity



Stephen Strasburg saves Washington tonight. You might have heard.

Strasburg makes his major league debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are major league by association only. It was a shrewd move by the Nationals, who want to break the kid in slowly. Against Pittsburgh, he'll feel like he's still in Syracuse. Except for the sold out stadium, the 300 media folks and the national TV broadcast. Nothing exceeds like excess.

Strasburg hasn't been mowing down big-league hitters for a decade. It just seems that way. We don't let people develop now, athletes or celebrities. We smother them, so by the time they're fully formed, we're on to someone else, too busy to notice. If Strasburg isn't Cy Young by the All Star Break, he's done. Bryce Harper is in the wings, ready for his turn to can't-miss.

From afar, Reds rookie Mike Leake watches with bemused detachment. "I guess when you're that good, you have to wear it a little bit,'' Leake says.

http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/2010/writers/paul_daugherty/06/08/leake/mike.leake.jpg
Cincinnati's Mike Leake is the first collegiate pitcher in 21 years to go straight to the major leagues.


I guess. The 22-year-old Leake and the 21-year-old Strasburg have one thing in common: Neither has lost in the major leagues. Of course, Leake has won five times for the Cincinnati Reds, made 11 starts and has an ERA of 2.22. Strasburg has 55 professional innings, in Syracuse and Harrisburg.

When Leake's family goes to the Reds team shop in Cincinnati, it can't find a Leake jersey. A fan goes to a game in Rochester, N.Y., on the night Strasburg pitches there, he can buy a Strasburg jersey for $19.95.

When Leake became the first college pitcher in 21 years to go straight to the major leagues, he had a postgame media contingent of maybe five writers and a couple TV guys. Strasburg gets that kind of attention ordering a pizza.

Leake has thrived thus far in Cincinnati, fully under the radar. He knows Strasburg. He told USA Today that Strasburg was "overweight, pouty and used to cry'' when he was taken out of games, when both were 11 and on the same traveling team. But Leake has little feel for the publicity tornado that has surrounded Strasburg in the last two months. "I'm not really in tune with it,'' he says. "[Cincinnati] isn't New York.'' Or Washington.

Comparing how the Reds handled Leake with how the Nationals have handled Strasburg has been a cottage industry among the baseball intelligentsia. Leake is 22, pitched three years at Arizona State, winning 40 times. The Reds drafted him eighth overall last June. He has dazzled the majors by throwing breaking balls and painting the corners of the plate with a very fine brush. The Greg Maddux comparisons are premature, but not inaccurate.

Leake is SoCal cool, a wisp of beard tugging at his chin. Nobody recognizes him. Not long ago, he was eating lunch in Cincinnati, when a man approached him. Leake prepared to sign an autograph; the guy wondered if Leake wanted a Reds schedule. Seriously.

Nothing rattles Leake. Except, maybe, walking hitters. (After walking seven in his first start, he has walked 18 in his last 10.) Leake has the word "Believe'' tattooed on his right side. It never occurred to him that he would not make the Reds rotation this spring. "I didn't feel like I had anything to prove in the minors,'' he says.

Leake is 5-foot-10, maybe, and 180 pounds, possibly; Strasburg is 6-4, 220. Strasburg throws a 100 mile-an-hour fastball and a 90 mile-an-hour curve. Leake arrived under the radar gun in February; everyone watched another Reds prospect, the flamethrowing Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman. Strasburg has been media-stalked since before Washington drafted him No. 1 overall last spring.

Lately, Strasburg's patience with the attention has thinned. He has blown off the autograph hordes. When asked what he'd learned in the minors, Strasburg said, "I've talked about that stuff a million times.'' Only a million? "Get it on the Internet.''

Leake has plenty of time for just about everyone. Of course, everyone in Cincinnati amounts to a few scribes in the clubhouse, milling around with their hands in their pockets. Regardless, being 22 years old and undefeated as a major leaguer could swell a head.

"Not at all,'' says Leake. "It's only five wins, and I don't look at wins too much. ERA is a better predictor of how you're doing. Lots of luck involved in wins and losses.

"I was a cocky piece of crap when I was younger, but that's not me now. I think I handle it pretty well. I'm laid back. It'll be tough for (Strasburg) because he'll be bombarded with it.''

The Reds studied Leake's personality as much as his pitching. They guessed, correctly, that he'd be able to handle the immediate jump to the majors. Quiet confidence plays well in the crucible. The Reds also have an impatient owner and a cranky fan base. Cincinnati isn't D.C. It has one summer passion, and that passion has been losing ball games since 2000. There is no patience for patience.

The Nationals have the luxury of time. The city has other passions. Winning isn't the short-term priority. Strasburg didn't have to be Leake. Leake's advice to Strasburg? "Learn to ignore,'' he says.

Don't do more off the field than you're comfortable with. Don't read the papers or listen to the radio. "It's not by his choice he's getting all this attention,'' says Leake. "Be welcome to the experience, but remember what you're there for.''

Enjoy it while you can, kid. There's always someone else, waiting to be Next.

Tuesday night, Strasburg's debut in D.C. will be witnessed by a sold-out crowd and broadcast on national TV. About 300 media members will attend the blessed event. In Cincinnati, Mike Leake will throw a bullpen session before his next scheduled start, Thursday afternoon.

Paul Daugherty is a columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer.





Source (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/paul_daugherty/06/08/leake/index.html#ixzz0qIu0vWFR)

[Bull Butter]

The second article sounds like a lot of "sour grapes" coming from Cincinnati. Leake is a good pitcher but it seems as if there is some jealousy coming from the writer and the pitcher. When Leake has to bring up something from 10 years ago in order to try and make Strasburg look bad, something is wrong.

Strasburg has the weight of the world on his shoulders right now. I think he's dealing with it fairly well. It looks like Leake is the one who needs to grow up.

[ziggy29]

Originally posted by IrishTex
He missed the record for strikeouts in a debut by one, trailing the Brooklyn Dodgers' Karl Spooner, who did it Sept. 22, 1954, vs. the New York Giants, and the Houston Astros' J.R. Richard who achieved the feat against the San Francisco Giants on Sept 5, 1971.
Which will probably never be broken in the era of pitch counts, especially for 21-year-old top prospects.

[Maroon87]

In other Nationals-related news, they drafted Calallen ex Sean Hoelscher in the 27th round.:cool:

[Buckeye1980]

Originally posted by Bull Butter



Strasburg has the weight of the world on his shoulders right now. I think he's dealing with it fairly well. It looks like Leake is the one who needs to grow up.


"Weight of the world?"

He is playing a game and others his age are fighting a war in the the Middle East. He is playing a game , not cleaning up an oil spill. He DOES NOT have the weight of the world on his shoulders. Sometimes I think all this is blown out of control!

[ziggy29]

Originally posted by Buckeye1980
"Weight of the world?"

He is playing a game and others his age are fighting a war in the the Middle East. He is playing a game , not cleaning up an oil spill. He DOES NOT have the weight of the world on his shoulders. Sometimes I think all this is blown out of control!
OK, "weight of the sports world" if it makes you feel better. I think that was implied, but sheesh.

[Buckeye1980]

Originally posted by ziggy29
OK, "weight of the sports world" if it makes you feel better. I think that was implied, but sheesh.


Not even the weighht of the sports world . Babseball will go on with or without his success

[Txbroadcaster]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Buckeye1980
Not even the weighht of the sports world . Babseball will go on with or without his success [/QUOTE


He has the weight of NAtionals..if he is great that franchise survives..if he flames out, they might be on the move again.

[ziggy29]

Originally posted by Buckeye1980
Not even the weighht of the sports world . Babseball will go on with or without his success
Yeah, but all the eyes of baseball are on him. You're being waaaaay too pedantic and literal on this one.