Obsessedsportsnut's Blog

Today for the first time, I watched a baseball game that wasnt the World Series and didnt involve either the A’s or the Giants. Yes. I watched a baseball game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals, arguably two of the worst teams this decade.

Why? Two words. Stephen Strasburg.

Strasburg has been the most hyped baseball prospect since Alex Rodriguez in 1993. During his junior year at San Diego State, he compiled a 13-1 record, a 1.32 ERA, 59 hits, 16 earned runs, 19 walks, and 195 strikeouts in only 109 inning pitched. Absolutely INSANE numbers. He was then drafted #1 in 2009 by the Washington Nationals. In the minor leagues this year, he finished his minor league stint with an overall record of 7–2, an ERA of 1.30, 65 strikeouts and 13 walks in 55⅓ innings, and a WHIP of 0.80. Again. Absolutely INSANE numbers.

Tonight, he made his major league debut pitching against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It was a sold out crowd, and the entire nation was buzzing with excitement over his debut. Any boy he didn’t disappoint. 7 innings pitched, 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 14 STRIKEOUTS, and NO WALKS. In his first game, he set the franchise record with most strikeouts in a game.

His feat is so amazing that there are only 5 other pitchers since 1900 to throw at least 14 strikeouts and 0 walks: Roger Clemens, Randy Johnson, Javier Vazquez, Mike Mussina, Brad Penny. That’s some pretty fine company to have!

Strasburg is the real deal, and he brings a sense of hope to a franchise that has struggled tremendously this decade.

However, this was the 2nd piece of really good news for the club this week. Yesterday in the 2010 draft, the Nationals again had the #1 draft pick, and they drafted a kid named Bryce Harper, who supposedly is one of the best power hitters in recent memory. If both he and Strasburg live up their hype, the Nationals will have such a solid foundation to build a team around and become competitive once again.

Elsewhere around Washington

The excitement in Washington isnt only around their baseball team.

Washington Redskins (football) – This offseason, they fired Jim Zorn, their coach for the past two years, and brought in Mike Shanahan, the former Denver Broncos coach who won 2 Superbowls with the team. Shanahan has to be one of the top 5 coaches in the league right now, and will definitely turn around the team. Not only that, they brought in Donovan McNabb from the Eagles to be their new starting QB, replacing Jason Campbell. Yes McNabb is getting older and he’s past his prime, but he’s still a big upgrade over Campbell. Also, McNabb gives the team at least 2-3 seasons of playing, which is more than enough time to develop their younger quarterbacks, Rex Grossman and Colt Brennan. If these two dont work out, they could also look to draft a QB in the next couple drafts.

Washington Wizards (basketball) – Recently, the Wizards have suffered, mainly stemming from Gilbert Arenas and his injuries/legal troubles. The Wizards used to be a force in the Eastern Conference, but now have struggled to make the playoffs these past two seasons. However, their fortunes changed in April’s draft lottery. Since they had the 5th worst record in the NBA last year, they had a 10% chance of getting the 1st pick (the Nets with the worst record had a 25% chance). However, the Wizards beat the odds and were awarded the #1 pick in the draft, where they’ll mostly likely draft John Wall from Kentucky. He’s the type of player that will be a cornerstone for the team and who you could definitely build around.