Mr. Strasburg Comes to Washington

WASHINGTON -- Five whole hours before the last-place Nationals opened a series with the reeling Milwaukee Brewers, hundreds of fans packed into the stands on the third base line at Nationals Park.

No. 1 overall pick Stephen Strasburg arrived in the nation's capital Friday afternoon four days after inking a record $15.1 million deal with one of baseball's most downtrodden franchises.

"It's been pretty wild," Strasburg said of the week-long process that began with down-to-the-wire negotiations and ended with an unofficial coronation in Washington. "It's a tremendous feeling. I'm excited to get my career started and hopefully I'll be playing up here with [the Nationals] soon."

The San Diego State right-hander was greeted with the type of fanfare normally reserved for heads of state in this town -- fireworks, $1 tickets, adoring fans, a pair of video montages on the center field scoreboard.

If this is what happens when all he does is sign a contract, what will happen when he pitches his first shutout, asked MASN broadcaster Bob Carpenter.

"Maybe a flyby from Air Force One," Strasburg joked.

Calling this a banner week for the Nationals seems like a gross misrepresentation of just what the last few days have meant to baseball in Washington. On Thursday, Mike Rizzo was installed as the permanent general manager of the club, slamming the door firmly shut on the rocky, and ultimately regrettable, Jim Bowden era.

Twenty-four hours later, Strasburg, a shining beacon of hope to fans who have had little reason to feel any over the past few years, donned a red Nationals cap and No. 37 jersey, bringing a palpable buzz to Nationals Park that hasn't really been felt since the building opened its doors last season.

"We made a pledge ... to build this team what we thought was the right way for the long-term, through scouting, through player development, with an emphasis on young pitching," team president Stan Kasten said. "We think this is one more fulfillment of that pledge. We have assembled ... a cadre of young pitchers in this organization, but we think this might be the most exciting fulfillment of that pledge."

Like it or not, Strasburg, now that he's signed on the dotted line, must bear the weight of enormous expectations on his 6-foot-5 frame.

Some of that comes from the record deal he signed and some from his triple-digit fastball and tilting slider. Much of it comes from all the losses and negative vibes emanating from Nationals Park over the past 18 months or so.

The Nationals, and Strasburg himself, are doing the best they can to tone down those expectations.

"We don't expect Stephen to be the savior of this franchise. He's just another one of our bright, shining young stars that are going to play in Washington for a long time," Rizzo said.

"There are a lot of good things that have happened, and all of it is predicated on young starting pitching ... so this is a continuation of that process. It doesn't begin here," Kasten said.

"I think the big thing is not to rush things and to go up [to Washington] when I'm ready," Strasburg said.

But this entire process has been about anticipation. Before draft day, it was: will the Nationals pick him? Once they did, it became: will he sign? Now, it is: when will he arrive in the major leagues and, to a lesser extent, will he be able to handle all the hype as he climbs the ladder toward Washington?

The Nationals made it sound very unlikely that his major league debut would come in 2009. Rizzo outlined a plan to have him debut in Florida instructional league in the next four or five weeks, and then, if all goes well, to send him to the Arizona Fall League in October.

No one, least of all Strasburg, seems worried about all the other stuff.

"I've always tried to be myself and just because there are a few dollar signs in front of me doesn't mean I'm gonna change who I am as a person," he said.



Scott Boras, Strasburg's agent, said all the hard work his client put in to transform himself into a No. 1 pick should pay enormous dividends. Strasburg went undrafted as a high school senior and was out of shape when he showed up for his first season at San Diego State under coach (and Hall of Famer) Tony Gwynn.

"I kind of created this beast myself," Strasburg said when asked whether he emulated any major league pitchers.

"His historic status and stature is something that was earned, something that was accomplished in his career," Boras said.

"[Rizzo] and I both evaluated Stephen much along the same lines. ... We both realized he had abilities physically, but we also realized that he would have the ability, both intellectually and with what his goals are as an athlete, to handle what comes with those physical talents, and that includes all the elements that come with the association to a contract."

Strasburg's biggest challenge, Rizzo said, would not be dealing with the expectations placed on him, but instead getting physically ready for the everyday nature of professional baseball, a sentiment the right-hander echoed.

"Bottom line is good pitchers get good hitters out," Strasburg said. "The thing I'm going to have to work on is making sure I'm ready ... for a 162-game season plus playoffs and being ready to pitch every five days instead of once a week [like in college].

"The big thing I've been told a lot -- especially at school from Tony Gwynn -- is that the game is the same out there [on the professional level]. All [the attention] is a little bit different, but as long as you go out there and take care of business on the field, you'll be successful."

Strasburg might be playing the same basic game as a pro, but this is a whole new one for the Nationals, who can, for the first time in awhile, actually bask in the glow of optimism.

"The Lerners build things," Boras said, referring to ownership's background in real estate. "That's exactly what they're doing here. They're building a foundation."