Stephen Strasburg is the biggest amateur pitching prospect since Brian Taylor, and next month he’ll likely become property of the Washington Nationals organization. He’s got a fastball that routinely tops 100 mph and a breaking ball that is described as “plus plus” by scouts. That means it’s not just better than average, it’s great. In fact, it tops out in the mid-90’s. I’m not sure if this kid has a good change-up yet, but if he can develop something in the 85 mph range he could be unstoppable. The big problem is two-fold: he’s unproven and could end up a bust (did I mention Brian Taylor’s name above?) and he’s represented by Scott Boras (the pronunciation of his last name will remind some of the feeling they get when negotiating with him), which means he’ll probably be demanding a huge bonus, far beyond anything we’ve seen before from a 1st round draft pick. The Nationals failed to sign their 1st rounder last year, so fans will be anxious to see them sign a top-level talent like Strasburg.

For those unfamiliar with this pitching phenom, check out this video from ESPN:

Tags: stephen strasburgh, washington nationals

The streak is over, and apparently Ryan Zimmerman is no Joe DiMaggio. Zim’s hitting streak ended at 30 games today, but the Nationals still pulled out a victory over Barry Zito and the San Francisco Giants by a score of 6-3. Shairon Martis started for the Nationals and got the win, improving his record to an impressive 5-0 this season. He is one of just 5 pitchers in the modern era to start a season 5-0 while playing for a team whose winning percentage was below .300.

Zimmerman showed a lot of respect towards the late DiMaggio following the game, noting how much tougher it must have been to get to 56 consecutive games with a hit. It’s fitting that Zim’s streak ended in San Francisco, as DiMaggio was a San Fran native himself.

Tags: barry zito, baseball, joe dimaggio, ryan zimmerman, shairon martis, washington nationals