The Washington Nationals fell to the San Francisco Giants in game one of the series. But Stephen Strasburg leaving the game through injury is a huge blow.
Although the Washington Nationals dropped game one of the weekend series to the San Francisco Giants, that wasn’t the biggest blow of the day. Starter Stephen Strasburg had to leave the game in the second inning due to injury.
After the game the Strasburg said that it was shoulder inflammation and he had been suffering it for a while now. That latter part is particularly concerning, as we’ve seen with him before, trying pitch through a niggle rarely ends well.
Strasburg didn’t seem particularly optimistic. Said he’d been dealing with it for a few starts, but it really “acted up” on him today. Didn’t want to draw conclusions until he gets an MRI.
— Chelsea Janes (@chelsea_janes) June 9, 2018
The team are unsure on the severity of the injury, but a DL stint seems likely at the very least to get him rested. But if it’s serious, then it could put a real dampener on the the rotation moving forward.
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As has been well documented, it’s been the Nats starting pitching that’s carried them in the early going of the season. They ranked second in the National League in ERA behind only the St Louis Cardinals, but to miss their second ace for any amount of time is a big blow.
With an MRI due on Saturday, hopefully it will be confirmed that Stephen Strasburg will only miss a start or two.
Soto goes deep again
The legend of Juan Soto has yet another chapter. The young outfielder went deep in the fourth inning for his third blast of the season.
The homer came on a two strike count, and his approach with two strikes is so mightily impressive this season.
His batting average with two strikes on him is .207, which doesn’t sound impressive, but given the situation, it’s amazing. For example, you may know Mike Trout, he’s batting .211 with two strikes. And the league as a whole is hitting .170 with two strikes. If he keeps up this pace, he’s most definitely here to stay.
The Washington Capitals Effect
On Friday the crowd was a sell-out as the official attendance of 41,591, which is actually 45 bigger than the capacity. And there was plenty of fans repping their Washington Capitals gear at the game.
In case you haven’t heard the Caps are Stanley Cup Champions, and have given D.C. a much needed sporting triumph. One the Nats will be looking to follow up come October in the World Series.
The entire team will be present at Nats Park tomorrow, along with the Stanley Cup itself. And it will be Alexander Ovechkin who throws out the first pitch in what’s sure to be another sell-out at the ballpark.
Next: Andrew Stevenson Interview
The Washington Nationals square off against former Nat Pudge Rodriguez’s son, Dereck tomorrow at 12:05pm. They’ll be looking to square the series behind Gio Gonzlez.