National's decision to shut down Strasburg

One of the worst I have ever seen. There was just no logic behind it.

I hope they don't win a World Series for the next 20 years.

Basically, the Nationals did research on every young pitcher with arm issues and found that roughly 160 innings would be a good cap that would create the best combination of maximizing effectiveness and minimizing injury risk.

The constantly asked question is about skipping starts, but the Nationals' research found that skipping starts for rest was far more dangerous in terms of re-injury. Basically, every decision they made was done based off of empirical research and educated guesses.

It sure as hell was not a flawless process, but I commend them for trying to maximize arguably their greatest asset. The front office (and Vegas) has a far higher rate of future value where as most sports fans want immediate gratification.

The Nationals have put a greater value on hopefully having a healthier, more effective Strasburg in the future than having their second best starter pitch for one postseason. Sometimes, there is more than just 2012.

Plus, if Strasburg were to have pitched this full season, then they would have expected a regression next year (a common trend among young pitchers who increased their workload a lot, usually 70+ innings).

Hideo Nomo
Dwight Gooden
Kerry Wood
Dontrelle Willis

I can see why they're afraid of overextending him early in his career.

I saw that there was a pitcher on Atlanta that was in the same situation as Strasburg. What Atlanta did though was start him in the bullpen, then move him to the rotation so they could use him the whole year. I forgot his name and someone can correct me if i'm wrong, but that seemed like a much better strategy.

how many games did he win in April, and how many games did the Nats secure a playoff start by?

not being a smartass. genuinely curious.

I don't even understand the Nationals decision making process. If they were so concerned about capping Strasburg's innings, why didn't they go to a six-man rotation or have him start the first couple months in the bullpen or have him skip a start every once in a while or just shut him down in the beginning of the season? There's so many ways the Nationals could have avoided this controversy. And you have to go all out to win the World Series when your team has the opportunity to do so. Imagine if the Phillies had shut down Cole Hamels in 2008 because he had 227 innings pitched in the regular season. It's ridiculous.

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If they were so concerned about capping Strasburg's innings, why didn't they go to a six-man rotation or have him start the first couple months in the bullpen or have him skip a start every once in a while or just shut him down in the beginning of the season?

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They assessed the risks and found that a five-man rotation with continuous starts (4-5 days in between) minimized his risk of damage because longer amounts of time between starts threw off his bullpen sessions and skipped starts was more dangerous to his arm.

Every decision is done without discounting the future. That is really about all I can expand on this topic.

quote:

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They assessed the risks and found that a five-man rotation with continuous starts (4-5 days in between) minimized his risk of damage because longer amounts of time between starts threw off his bullpen sessions and skipped starts was more dangerous to his arm.

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So have him start the season in May. There were many ways they could of handled this, the Nats choose the worst possible one.