Author Topic: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread  (Read 49370 times)

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Offline spidernat

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #701: October 16, 2019, 08:59:09 PM »
that is crazy, seeing Strasburg like that is so :shock: but also :lmao:



I don't know if any of you noticed this but when they were huddled on the field after the victory, Rodney was the one in the middle leading the chant. And all of them were really into it! These guys all seem to genuinely like each other. I don't think that happens a lot in team sports where players come from such diverse backgrounds.

Offline tomterp

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #702: October 16, 2019, 09:02:15 PM »
that is crazy, seeing Strasburg like that is so :shock: but also :lmao:



I don't know if any of you noticed this but when they were huddled on the field after the victory, Rodney was the one in the middle leading the chant. And all of them were really into it! These guys all seem to genuinely like each other. I don't think that happens a lot in team sports where players come from such diverse backgrounds.

I was glad to see Rodney in the middle of it, having fun like a young 35 year old.    :hysterical:

Offline bluestreak

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #703: October 16, 2019, 09:16:05 PM »
I’ve heard multiple MLB players said that Rodney is, bar none, the best teammate they have ever had.

We nag about Rizzo, but I think the Parra, Rodney and Cabrera pickups were genius in terms of team chemistry. Svurluga said that he called up prior teams (especially on Parra) and inquired into their quality as teammates and that’s why he picked them up, not as much as for their playing ability (although they have all contributed on the field). 

Offline tomterp

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #704: October 16, 2019, 09:27:29 PM »
I’ve heard multiple MLB players said that Rodney is, bar none, the best teammate they have ever had.

We nag about Rizzo, but I think the Parra, Rodney and Cabrera pickups were genius in terms of team chemistry. Svurluga said that he called up prior teams (especially on Parra) and inquired into their quality as teammates and that’s why he picked them up, not as much as for their playing ability (although they have all contributed on the field).

I know nothing about Rodney other than his mound presence and demeanor, which is somewhat aloof.  Something about him, however, makes me want to watch him pitch and root for him.  Maybe because he's almost as old as me.    :lol:

I did find it surprising because his leadership in the center of the celebration was contrary to the aloofness I had grown accustomed to seeing. 

Offline spidernat

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #705: October 16, 2019, 09:57:19 PM »
I know nothing about Rodney other than his mound presence and demeanor, which is somewhat aloof.  Something about him, however, makes me want to watch him pitch and root for him.  Maybe because he's almost as old as me.    :lol:

 



aren't you old enough to be Rodney's father? :shrug:





I did find it surprising because his leadership in the center of the celebration was contrary to the aloofness I had grown accustomed to seeing. 



I have heard the same thing about Rodney that bs posted. People say that he actually gets to know his teammates and is sincere about getting to know their families.

Offline vicki4471

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #706: October 17, 2019, 10:19:17 AM »
Anyone that can get Strasburg to loosen up like that is ok in my book. Parra has done so much for this team on and off the field. He came in with his fun, and his baby sharks, and for whatever reason the whole team including Stras  bought in and its been no stopping them since then. I know Harpers long gone and never coming back and for a long time that stung, then it pissed me off, then it made me really happy. I tried to imagine Harper in the clubhouse doing the baby shark, and dancing, and just being one of these guys in general and I just could not see it. The players say it every year, I love my team, we are family, yadda yadda, but this team actually makes me believe it. They truly love one another and when one of them succeeds they are all happy. And they love Davey too. The funniest memory I have from Tuesday is Rendon checking on Davey's heart when the game got tense.

1 small request though,  Can someone please make Dozier keep his shirt on?

Online Slateman

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #707: October 17, 2019, 10:48:54 AM »
Anyone that can get Strasburg to loosen up like that is ok in my book. Parra has done so much for this team on and off the field. He came in with his fun, and his baby sharks, and for whatever reason the whole team including Stras  bought in and its been no stopping them since then. I know Harpers long gone and never coming back and for a long time that stung, then it pissed me off, then it made me really happy. I tried to imagine Harper in the clubhouse doing the baby shark, and dancing, and just being one of these guys in general and I just could not see it. The players say it every year, I love my team, we are family, yadda yadda, but this team actually makes me believe it. They truly love one another and when one of them succeeds they are all happy. And they love Davey too. The funniest memory I have from Tuesday is Rendon checking on Davey's heart when the game got tense.

1 small request though,  Can someone please make Dozier keep his shirt on?
I could live with Dozier ripping his shirt off one more time this year . . .

Offline spidernat

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #708: October 17, 2019, 10:52:53 AM »
The players say it every year, I love my team, we are family, yadda yadda, but this team actually makes me believe it.


I forgot which of the players said it, it may have been Scherzer or Strasburg or Dozier (I think it was Strasburg), but he said he would do anything for his teammates. Maybe it was just talk after an emotional victory but this team definitely has something that other Nats teams lacked. My brother ran into Tony Larussa last year and he asked him his opinion on the Nats and Larussa told him that he didn't think the Nats would make the playoffs because they lacked team chemistry. :shrug:


Scherzer said that what they have is so special that he wants to keep winning to prolong the time they have together because they are all aware that this group will only be together for as long as they keep playing this season.




1 small request though,  Can someone please make Dozier keep his shirt on?


:lmao:  that's probably what Dozier's wife is telling him.

Offline JCA-CrystalCity

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #709: October 17, 2019, 12:53:35 PM »
I could live with Dozier ripping his shirt off one more time this year . . .
the team store should sell a Dozier jersey that is made out of that easy-to-tear fabric they used to use on break-away jersey to make it tough to tackle by grabbing a shirt.

Online Slateman

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #710: October 17, 2019, 01:26:47 PM »
the team store should sell a Dozier jersey that is made out of that easy-to-tear fabric they used to use on break-away jersey to make it tough to tackle by grabbing a shirt.
Do they make navy blue trash bags? :lol:

Offline bluestreak

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #711: October 21, 2019, 08:22:15 AM »
I wasn’t a fan in 2012, so can those that were answer this for me? I think that Strasburg won’t pitch for a team other than the Nats in his career. My guess is that isn’t the case without the shutdown. Is this true? Sorry to dredge this up, but it’s come up again recently.

Online Natsinpwc

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #712: October 21, 2019, 09:14:04 AM »
I wasn’t a fan in 2012, so can those that were answer this for me? I think that Strasburg won’t pitch for a team other than the Nats in his career. My guess is that isn’t the case without the shutdown. Is this true? Sorry to dredge this up, but it’s come up again recently.
Feinstein and other believe Boras mandated to Rizzo that Strasburg be shut down. If you believe that then I suppose it’s possible the contract only happens because of the shut down. Who knows. It’s also possible if he pitches post season he gets another TJ surgery by now. It’s all possible. People forget all that his post season start in 2014 wasn’t so great. He was a thrower back then. Not the pitcher he is now.

Offline spidernat

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #713: October 21, 2019, 09:26:50 AM »
I wasn’t a fan in 2012, so can those that were answer this for me? I think that Strasburg won’t pitch for a team other than the Nats in his career. My guess is that isn’t the case without the shutdown. Is this true? Sorry to dredge this up, but it’s come up again recently.



Hard to answer that. I know that the morons who are still nagging about it are projecting the pitcher they see now onto 2012. That's why they think the Nats would've won the world series that year. :smh:

Offline imref

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #714: October 21, 2019, 09:32:14 AM »


Hard to answer that. I know that the morons who are still nagging about it are projecting the pitcher they see now onto 2012. That's why they think the Nats would've won the world series that year. :smh:

I think we were all pretty surprised when he signed the extension with us a few years ago as the common belief is that he wanted to pitch closer to San Diego.  IIRC, he moved his family here a year ago, and a big reason for him wanting to stay, was how the Nats treated his TJ surgery and recovery, putting his long-term health ahead of the team's short term needs.

Online Slateman

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #715: October 21, 2019, 09:39:19 AM »
I wasn’t a fan in 2012, so can those that were answer this for me? I think that Strasburg won’t pitch for a team other than the Nats in his career. My guess is that isn’t the case without the shutdown. Is this true? Sorry to dredge this up, but it’s come up again recently.
Who knows.

You can point to several examples of pitches who came back and pitched a ton after TJS.  Matt Harvey comes to mind. I think Harvey is a bad example due to his other habits and issues. On the other hand, Tommy john himself pitched 200+ innings in his first season back.

This issue is complicated by the overall concept of innings limits, and whether or not they really do anything. Pitchers have been substantially limited over the last 10-20 years, but there are far more injuries to pitchers. Much is being made of mechanics and workload now, versus decades ago when it was just expected that when you got to the bigs, you would be throwing 220+ innings ever season.

As for Strasburg staying here, it probably had to do as much with is family situation as it did with his health. He seemed to want to pitch more in 2012. I've often felt that the team handled his situation poorly that season, and that the easiest, simplest solution would have been to simply start him in late May rather than in April. He hits his innings limit in the playoffs. But overall, I think he wants to keep stability in his family. If he leaves DC, it probably won't be until the twilight of his career.

Offline blue911

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #716: October 21, 2019, 09:43:53 AM »


Hard to answer that. I know that the morons who are still nagging about it are projecting the pitcher they see now onto 2012. That's why they think the Nats would've won the world series that year. :smh:

Four and a half months was Strasburg’s longest season prior to 2012. He had one season were he pitch more than once a week. And people believe he would have been effective pitching into month seven. 160 innings is the number you get when develop a starter to pitch a five month season. People got hung up on the innings, when the Nationals were looking at length of time.

Online Slateman

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #717: October 21, 2019, 09:45:54 AM »
Four and a half months was Strasburg’s longest season prior to 2012. He had one season were he pitch more than once a week. And people believe he would have been effective pitching into month seven. 160 innings is the number you get when develop a starter to pitch a five month season. People got hung up on the innings, when the Nationals were looking at length of time.
I honestly think the 160 inning limit had more to do with building up his workload than recovery from TJS. Like I said, they could have just started him in late May/Early June.

That being said, it was the height of hubris to believe that you would get multiple shots at the WS after 2012.

Offline nfotiu

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #718: October 21, 2019, 09:49:56 AM »


Hard to answer that. I know that the morons who are still nagging about it are projecting the pitcher they see now onto 2012. That's why they think the Nats would've won the world series that year. :smh:
There's a lot of truth to that.  And it seems every great post season start he has makes those voice grow louder.  He wasn't the pitcher he is now back then.   He was an inexperienced kid with a tired arm who'd already pitched more innings than he ever had.  I don't necessarily buy the narrative that he was mentally weak early in his career, but he has definitely developed an a ability to handle pressure and adversity much better than he likely would have at the time.

Offline nfotiu

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #719: October 21, 2019, 09:55:12 AM »
I honestly think the 160 inning limit had more to do with building up his workload than recovery from TJS. Like I said, they could have just started him in late May/Early June.

That being said, it was the height of hubris to believe that you would get multiple shots at the WS after 2012.
I don't know that a team that was 21.5 games out the year before and never made the post season is going to have the foresight to hold back starting Strasburg so that he can pitch in the post season.   

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #720: October 21, 2019, 09:58:53 AM »
I don't know that a team that was 21.5 games out the year before and never made the post season is going to have the foresight to hold back starting Strasburg so that he can pitch in the post season.   
Maybe, but I also don't think you give up as much (on paper) as we did to get Gio Gonzalez to not compete for the division.

Offline spidernat

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #721: October 21, 2019, 10:41:23 AM »
I wish we could read back the posts where people were hand wringing about Strasburg's "inverted W" delivery (at the time that was the trendy thing to talk about, like "dry humping" relievers :lmao:).

Offline Baseball is Life

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #722: October 21, 2019, 11:32:58 AM »
I wasn’t a fan in 2012, so can those that were answer this for me? I think that Strasburg won’t pitch for a team other than the Nats in his career. My guess is that isn’t the case without the shutdown. Is this true? Sorry to dredge this up, but it’s come up again recently.

I read somewhere where Rizzo has a signed photo on his desk or in his office from Stras that says something like "thanks for taking care of me." Maybe that's some insight why he re-signed here.

Offline nfotiu

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Re: The Stephen Strasburg Appreciation Thread
« Reply #723: October 24, 2019, 12:49:11 AM »
Stras may give up a big home run or two at a key spot again at some point in his career.   But, jeez, for the last 4-5 years he's been more money than any about anyone else, and has unequivocally been one of the best post season pitchers in the game.   I don't get how anyone can still make comments on this board or anywhere else about him folding under pressure.  At this point, if I was a manager and had my choice at anyone in the major leagues to start a game 7, could you make a good argument that he isn't your guy?

Offline imref

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