Toughest Test in Victory over Reds
The world of baseball was anticipating the great match-up between Washington Nationals rookie sensation Stephen Strasburg and the team with the best offense in the league – the Cincinnati Reds.
The hard throwing 22-year old passed this test (arguably his toughest to date) when his Nationals beat the Reds 8-5 Wednesday night. What made his manager very proud, in addition to beating the best offense in the game, was the fact that the rookie did this on the road, in one of the toughest ballparks for pitchers – Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park.
“Cincinnati is first in the league in hitting,” said Washington manager Jim Riggleman. “This is a good park to hit in. He has to be very proud of that effort.”
The Reds lead the league in hits, RBI, and batting average as a team. Their home field is known to be friendly to hitters – home runs can come easily there.
Strasburg’s line on this day was a good one – 5 1/3 innings pitched, with three earned runs and seven hits allowed. Strasburg is now 5-2 in nine career starts.
However, Strasburg himself believes that he could have done better. His description of his own performance on the mound – “just OK.” He believes that he made some mistakes, but that the Reds hitters did not capitalize on them, as they normally do.
The buzz in the air was evident even when Strasburg was taking his warm-up pitches prior to the actual game. In all actuality though, many baseball pundits were eagerly anticipating this match-up prior to Wednesday.
That’s because it was interesting to see who would win – Strasburg and his heater (which reaches 100 MPH at times) or the Big Red Machine circa 2010, led by All-Star first baseman Joey Votto.
Jonny Gomes, the Reds cleanup hitter and left fielder on that day, had this to say about the Nats’ rookie – “I saw a lot of good things out of him. He throws his curve for strikes. His 100 mph might be his third-best pitch. I don’t want to face him everyday.”
Gomes struck out twice for an 0-3 performance. Him saying that Strasburg’s high-velocity heater is his third-best pitch is actually a credit to the rookie, not just dismissing him as a one dimensional pitcher but one with an arsenal of weapons to look out for.
Fans love to see Strasburg pitch because he is a dominant, strikeout pitcher. In fact, since June 8, he already has 75 strikeouts. The fact that he had seven strikeouts against the league’s best offensive team in only 5 1/3 innings is a feat in itself. In his first nine starts, he has at least five strikeouts in each game.
Strasburg had a very fine performance, but that would have been for naught if his teammates had not come through offensively. After Strasburg allowed the opening run for the Reds, the Washington bats came alive in getting seven runs over the next three innings, giving Strasburg much needed run-support.
The Nationals rookie is a pitcher who is hyped up and talked about a lot – with good reason. Wednedsay night, he proved that he is capable of handling big games against big name opposition, on the road as well. More tests await him in the future, but his manager, team, and fans are all confident that their prized rookie will come through.
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