Strasburg lives up to the hype, strikes out 14
After all the hype and surrounding Stephen Strasburg, the 21-year-old No.1 pick didn’t disappoint, exceeding all expectations in his MLB debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Strasburg struck out 14 batters in seven innings whilst throwing 94 pitches, incredibly walking none. He gave up just four hits, but did allow a two-run home run to Pittsburgh’s third baseman Delwyn Young in the fourth inning – the only blemish on his box score.
What Strasburg did on Tuesday night was special considering the fact the 14 strikeouts were the third-most by a pitcher on his debut – behind JR Richard (15) and Karl Spooner (15). But no-one in history has struck out 14 and walked none in their major league debut and only five other players have had such games since 1900.
Even likely future Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez was blown away the Strasburg – who hit 101 MPH on the radar gun. "I've been catching a lot of guys, but this kid is unbelievable.”
After his seven innings the 21-year-old was given a standing ovation by the sell-out crowd in Washington and took a quick curtain call as well.
"I just wanted to go out there and say I've had my first outing in the big leagues. I've had a great time,” the No.1 overall pick from 2009 said.
"The only thing I really remember is the first pitch -ball inside - everything else is just such a blur. At one point I lost track of how many innings I threw. I was like, 'You know what? I'm just going to go out there and have fun.' It's amazing.
"It's kind of like when you get married and everything, you kind of go into it wanting to remember everything - and once it's done, you can't remember a single thing,” Strasburg added.
Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman helped ease the pressure on Strasburg by hitting a solo home run in the first inning. And even when he gave up the two-run home run to Young in the fourth, it didn’t faze Strasburg, he just kept rolling along, striking out the last seven batters he faced.
His reward for such an impressive performance? Three shaving cream pies to the face and a silver Elvis wig while being interviewed on TV after the game and high praise from his teammate Adam Dunn.
"He pitched probably the best game I've ever seen pitched."
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