| 09 June 2009
We're not ashamed to admit it: We support the Washington Nationals. So tonight's MLB entry draft is of particular importance as the Nationals are likely to select phenom pitcher Stephen Strasburg.
103 MPH fastball? Check.
Pro ready? Check.
Possible catalyst of baseball growth? Check.
Pricey? Uh, yeah.
Surprise, surprise, Strasburg is going to command a huge contract, but as the pundits go back and forth about what the true value of unproven superstar talent is, perhaps the Nationals (sorry Natinals) management should look toward F Street to see just how one player can transform a city.
It's been five seasons since Washington D.C., had baseball return to its sports make-up and in those five seasons the team hasn't been competitive. The stands are empty, and this season the Nationals are on pace to be worse than they were in last year's 100-loss season.
Sounds familiar, right?
In the way that Alex Ovechkin singlehandedly transformed a stagnating hockey market into one of the league's most exciting arenas to be in, Strasburg brings the Nationals an opportunity to put the other red team on the map for reasons other than being an easy W on an opponent's schedules.
It took three years for Ovechkin to convert a Redskins-crazy city into the hottest market in hockey and at that was all on a rookie contract. Improbable goals, willing the Caps to victory, an impossible run to the playoffs, and a strong supporting cast that emerged around the Great Eight contributed to hockey's rise, and the situation for the Nationals seems ripe for a superstar to bring forth a new age of baseball.
The Nationals, offensively, are not as bad as their record suggests. They already have an all-star third baseman in Ryan Zimmerman and power slugger Adam Dunn helps round out an offense that ranks sixth in the National League. So you can see how a superstar pitcher can fit in with the Nationals makeup.
Bringing it back to Ovechkin, where Strasburg will be entering a team with talent but no direction, Ovechkin was the direction and it was up to General Manager George McPhee to put the talent around him. So while Strasburg might bring an "Ovechkin-like" talent to the Nats, it's hard to say the situations are the same.
The thought of a D.C. triumvirate of superstar talent is enticing, Strasburg, Ovechkin and Arenas, but what remains to be seen is if Strasburg can make baseball relevant in D.C. in the way Ovechkin turned Washington into puck-head central.
So could a Stephen Strasburg strikeout create as much emotion as an Alex Ovechkin goal? Could a pitcher pack the stands in the same way a high-octane left wing can? Or is he just another chapter in baseball's long book of star players who leave for the Yankees or Red Sox for a larger contract?
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
