So why couldn't Strasburg have been the playoff bullpen ace like David Price was? He probably throws 101-102 in the bullpen and he doesn't blow that lead for us.
You've brought up David Price multiple times and each time I've pointed out that the situations are completely different. Price did not throw as many innings as Strasburg. Price was not coming off TJ surgery. Basically, stop being such a troll. However, ignoring Price, I'll answer why this would have been stupid (again):
If you are protecting his arm, you don't send him to the bullpen where he comes in and throws max-max effort every pitch. You saw how J-Zimm came out of the pen -- it's natural to put more behind every pitch when you're only coming in for 5-15 pitches. Anyone who has pitched knows the difference in mentality and execution when you switch from a starter to a reliever. With the increase in effort in mind, the moving Strasburg to the bullpen is dumb for a couple reasons:
- If his mechanics are already breaking down because of the fatigue this year (insinuated by the Nats) you don't want him throwing at a higher level of effort than he normally does.
- If his mechanics aren't already broken down, a change in role where he's exerting more effort could alter his mechanics, making him more susceptible to injury
There's also zero evidence that Strasburg out of the pen would have been effective. Frankly, he is so easily rattled that I can't believe any Nats fan is painting him as our rock that would have stood up to all the pressure that Drew had to go up against.
If you're concerned about future injury, shut him down when you think you need to. If you are more concerned about this year than injury, then don't half-step -- have him in the rotation, not the bullpen.
