Stephen Strasburg talks about shut-down decision as Washington Nationals’ pitchers struggle-MLB
Stephen Strasburg has stated that he tried to avoid the shut-down decision made by the management toward him but he had to accept it reluctantly.
However he rubbishes any possibility of coming back while the National League Division Series progresses.
The Nationals have seen their pitchers failing to absorb the pressure and throwing quality innings in the post-season so far.
Poor performance against the St. Louis Cardinals has led many to criticise the Nationals for removing Strasburg from the season. Many believe that with Strasburg in the rotation, the Nationals will not have allowed the Cardinals to score so many runs against
them.
So far three games have been played in the playoffs by the Nationals and in all of them their pitchers have struggled immensely.
Neither Gio Gonzalez nor Jordan Zimmermann could ensure the Nationals early momentum in the games by striking-out batters and finishing innings scoreless.
Similarly Edwin Jackson leaked runs in the third match and suffered the loss. As a result, he has put the Nationals on the brink of losing the series.
Against this backdrop, Strasburg has expressed his penchant to step on the mound and help his team but he believes this is not going to happen. He is of the view that returning to mound after a span of more than one month will not be the right decision.
“It’s their call,” Strasburg said. “It’d be pretty reckless to have me get on the mound and get going now after not even getting on the mound for a month. I talked to them about it for the week after that, but they were pretty firm. Now it’s to the point
where I don’t think it would be smart for anybody to do that.”
Strasburg currently is part of the team and is enjoying a post-season atmosphere with them.
He will be looking to be solid next year and leading the Nationals’ pitching staff just as he did in the 2012 Major League Baseaball regular season.
As the Nationals face defeats against the Cardinals, he must be disappointed with the way his team is not living up to the challenges when it matters.
He will like to see the Nationals winning the last two matches of the Division Series.
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