Understanding Shohei Ohtani’s future after devastating UCL tear
USA TODAY Sports’ Bob Nightengale breaks down the ramifications of Shohei Ohtani’s UCL tear and how it affects him physically and financially.
SportsPulse, USA TODAY
Stephen Strasburg, one of the greatest pitching prospects in baseball history whose massive potential was largely realized but never totally fulfilled due to injuries, is planning to retire in September, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation.
The person confirmed Strasburg’s retirement to USA TODAY Sports because it has not yet been announced. Strasburg’s decision was first reported by the Washington Post.
Strasburg, 35, changed the trajectory of a struggling Washington Nationals organization when he was chosen with the first overall pick in the 2009 draft, and in tandem with 2010 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Harper vaulted them to relevance and perennial playoff contention. His baseball epitaph features plenty of bold type − 2019 World Series MVP, three-time All-Star, a dominating 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.
Yet Strasburg’s sublime career was often disrupted by injury, and bookended by a pair of significant maladies − reconstructive elbow surgery that led to an oft-debated “shutdown” as the 2012 Nationals aimed for the playoffs, and a debilitating bout with thoracic outlet syndrome that ultimately ended it.
After leading the Nationals to the 2019 World Series title, winning Games 2 and 6 against the Houston Astros to earn MVP honors, Strasburg opted out of his $175 million contract and signed a seven-year, $245 million contract to return to Washington.
Yet Strasburg pitched just two games in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and five games in 2021, none after June 1. He ultimately was diagnosed with TOS and underwent surgery later that year.
But nerve issues continued to affect his ability to pitch and, as the Post reported, eventually interfered with basic life functions. His final stint on the mound came in his only start of 2022, a 4 ⅔-inning, seven-run appearance at Miami on June 9.
MAX EARNINGS: Who is the highest-paid starting pitcher in MLB?
While Strasburg kept a locker at Nationals Park and continued trying to work through his pain, the 6-5, 239-pound ace never came close to progressing toward a return. He made just eight starts and pitched 31 ⅓ innings since signing his contract in December 2019. The person familiar with Strasburg’s retirement indicated he will receive the remainder of his contract without a long-term settlement.
The quiet and painful end won’t erase all Strasburg did in D.C. after he was selected out of San Diego State amid much hype in 2009. He instantly lived up to it, striking out 14 Pittsburgh Pirates in a seven-inning 2010 debut that Nationals fans dubbed “Strasmas.” Yet the electricity shorted out two months later, when Strasburg complained of elbow pain during a start at Philadelphia in August 2010.
He’d require Tommy John elbow surgery and upon his 2012 return, resumed dominating as a Nationals squad gelled into a perennial contender. Yet general manager Mike Rizzo intimated that Strasburg would be on an innings limit that year and that he’d put the ace down despite the Nationals’ emergence.
Sure enough, Strasburg’s last start that year came in September 2012 against the Marlins and the Nationals would go on to lose a five-game National League Division Series. While the sequence was hotly debated and steadfastly defended by Rizzo, it marked a key point in the handling of pitchers returning from Tommy John, a procedure that would grow far more prevalent in coming years.
And so the Strasburg career template came into focus: Stretches of dominance, trips to All-Star Games but also the injured list. Strasburg topped the 30-start mark just three times in his 13-year career. An inflamed shoulder limited him to 22 starts in 2018, and left doubt that Strasburg might keep it all together physically ever again.
Then came 2019, and a dominant 251-strikeout, 33-start tour de force in which he led the NL with 209 innings pitched. The postseason was his signature moment, as he pitched three scoreless innings relieving Max Scherzer and picked up the win in the wild-card game, before earning a win each in the NLDS and NLCS before his World Series MVP turn.
But like fellow phenoms like Matt Harvey, TOS was one mountain Strasburg could never fully climb. He’ll just have to settle for revitalizing an entire organization.
Contributing: Bob Nightengale
