Major League Baseball

Strasburg's next opponent is adversity

Published Jul. 2, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

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Bob Klapisch

Any analysis of Stephen Strasburg begins with a disclaimer: Looking for his flaws is like making a big deal about a scratch on a Bentley. Only a month into his major league career, Strasburg has convinced talent evaluators (and hitters) that’s he’s among the game’s top five pitchers with a growing likelihood he’ll be No. 1 by summer’s end.

That is, if he’s resilient enough to handle that first scratch. Strasburg’s 5-0 loss to the Braves on Monday was largely the fault of his defense, which abandoned him in the seventh, and the Nationals’ own sorry offense. But there were also several instances during which Strasburg was simply unable to overpower the Braves’ hitters as he’d done his previous four starts.

And that’s what makes Strasburg’s start against the Mets on Saturday nearly as compelling as his debut against the Pirates. For the first time in his nascent career, Strasburg is realizing there’s a gap between overwhelming velocity and racking up wins.

Somehow, he has just two victories in five starts, and admitted after Monday’s game, “I’m only human . . . I’m not always going to have lights-out stuff.”

That’s no small concession for a pitcher whose pedigree is based on dominance. Strasburg not only expects to win, he presumes he’s going to embarrass hitters along the way. That means every hit, let alone every run, is am aberration both to Strasburg and his handlers.

Strasburg was carefully nurtured by the Nationals on his way to The Show, but his true guardian has been Scott Boras. The super-agent has grown Strasburg the way a scientist develops a test-tube experiment. Every aspect of Strasburg’s career has been attended to, including his physical training, his psychological well-being and his personal life.

Just as athletes choose to be represented by Boras for a specific reason -- maximum profit -- the agent is similarly selective. Boras doesn’t go for athletes who are rebels or anti-social. He rejects athletes who are volatile and likely to under-achieve. Instead, Boras wants his players to be machines, not unlike himself.

He found that quality in Strasburg early on, and has turned it into one of the right-hander’s most important weapons. Sure, it’s great to throw 100-mph, but talent without the killer instinct is a prophecy for failure.

Obviously, it was unrealistic to think Strasburg would never struggle. He was going to bleed sooner or later. But sooner has arrived and it marks an important landmark in Strasburg’s career.

The Mets will be the first team to face Strasburg in the aftermath of a less-than-breathtaking outing. It could go one of two ways: either Strasburg is motivated by the knowledge that not everyone is intimidated by his radar-gun readings, or else he swallows hard the first time the Mets build a rally and David Wright is standing at the plate with the same confidence Yunel Escobar had on Monday night.

The Braves shortstop was behind in the count 1-2 in the seventh inning with the bases loaded, trying to avoid becoming Strasburg’s eighth strikeout. Not only did Escobar survive, he ripped a line-drive single to left, Strasburg’s final pitch of the night.

As the phenom walked off the mound, the expression on his face was halfway between bewilderment and disgust, two unfamiliar emotions for a pitcher weaned on dominance. Afterward, the Braves made sure to give Strasburg the respect he was due -- including Bobby Cox’s prediction that Strasburg would end up in the Hall of Fame -- but a message had nevertheless been delivered.

And that was: Just as Strasburg hunts, he too will be hunted.

“It’s kind of weird to say you feel sorry for (Strasburg), but it’s unfortunate that him, unlike most rookies, can’t come up to the big league level and fly under the radar,” said winning pitcher Tim Hudson.

“He’s come up with a lot of media coverage, and unfortunately teams that he’s pitching against are going to come with their A game against him, because they want to beat him. Because he’s the hot rookie that’s supposed to beat you.”

It’ll be a compelling Round 2 for Strasburg: He’ll match his 1.5 strikeouts per inning ratio against a Mets team that rarely whiffs. They’re 13th in the National League in Ks and make the most of their opportunities -- second in the league in stolen base percentage (81).

But the Mets have struggled on the road of late, losing 5-of-6, which could make them easy targets on Saturday. If Strasburg is looking to make a statement of his own, now is the time.

In a complete game, 7-0 victory, Lee was ahead in the count 0-2 or 1-2 a total of 16 times. Even though manager Don Wakamatsu praised the Yankees for making Lee work hard -- “that was a patient as any lineup has been against Cliff this season,” he said -- Lee nevertheless finished off the Bombers in one or two pitches 14 times.

Question is, was Lee auditioning for his future team? He obviously wouldn’t tell reporters where he’d like to be traded or where he’ll sign as a free agent this winter. But Lee made it clear he enjoyed pitching in the Bronx.

“Yeah, I like it (in New York),” he said. “You know there’s going to be a lot of fans. I’ve always enjoyed pitching here. They’re knowledgeable fans that understand the game, and they get into it. As a player, that’s what you like and respect.”

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