Major League Baseball

Nats' savior is new GM Rizzo, not Strasburg

Published Aug. 20, 2009 8:52 p.m. ET

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For all the fanfare surrounding the Washington Nationals signing right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg shortly before midnight on Monday and the proclamation of it as a "watershed moment" in the history of a floundering franchise, Thursday's official announcement of Mike Rizzo as the team's general manager is when the true foundation for the future was put in place.

Rizzo, working in the world of professional uncertainty since being asked to mind the Nationals' store in the aftermath of the March 1 resignation of general manager Jim Bowden, is the one who spent the last 5½ months bringing a sense of stability to the franchise that had become a baseball eyesore for its off-field fiascos and on-field floundering.


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Now it will be Rizzo who is allowed to build off the cornerstones he has put in place, each of which has been every bit as significant as the addition of Strasburg, who fans may want to proclaim a savior but who baseball people realize has yet to throw a professional pitch.

Yes, Strasburg received a record-setting $15.1 million, four-year package to sign with the Nationals. He was proclaimed the best prospect to come out of college since at least Mark Prior, which in itself should be a flashing caution sign.

Remember Prior? He was the right-handed pitcher who came out of the University of Southern California in the spring of 2002, carrying the best-ever tag, going to the Chicago Cubs with the second pick in the draft, but now is faced with figuring out what to do with the rest of his life, his baseball career sidetracked by a series of injuries.

That's no knock on Prior. It's merely a glaring example of just how fragile a player's career can be.

It also should underscore why it is important to have a solid base for a franchise, and not to put too much hope in the athletic abilities of an amateur in trying to chart a championship path.

"This isn't the NBA, where one player transforms a team," said Kasten, who broke into sports as president of the NBA Atlanta Hawks before adding similar duties with the Atlanta Braves, and eventually migrating to his current role in Washington after Ted Turner sold his Atlanta sports entities.

"Will (Strasburg) be a huge part of building a winner here? We think so. We hope so."

Kasten, however, understands that even if Strasburg fails to meet expectations, the Nationals can become a winner. With Rizzo, however, there isn't an option. If he doesn't do his job well, the Nationals will have to regroup.

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