No real surprise, but the Nats announced on Tuesday that prized pitching prospect Stephen Strasburg has been promoted to Triple-A Syracuse. It will be the final minor-league stop for the 21-year-old right-hander, who went 3-1 with a 1.64 ERA at Double-A Harrisburg. Other than his final start – where a tight strike zone and some bloop hits made for a rough afternoon on Sunday – he was absolutely dominant. How many other pitchers can step right into Double-A, where most of the sport’s top prospects reside, and post a .165 batting average against and a 4.5/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio? Strasburg did it in five starts and now heads to upstate New York for a spell.
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Nats general manager Mike Rizzo denied there is any set plan to bring Strasburg up in June. How he performs against Triple-A batters will determine when he makes his debut at Nationals Park. But it can’t be far off at this point. The organization wants to see Strasburg continue to improve holding opposing runners on base, field his position more comfortable and deal with swinging the bat. He is headed to the National League, after all. Strasburg joins fellow 2009 MLB draft pick Drew Storen, chosen No, 10 overall in the draft last summer and himself promoted from Harrisburg to Syracuse last week. The two have become good friends over the last year.
“They’re certainly not wedded together,” Rizzo insisted. “Their pitching plans are unique, as are all of our developmental plans for all our pitchers and players. They just happened to be both accelerated-type of draft choices from last year’s draft. Drew going a little bit before [Strasburg] was just a happenstance that we felt – again, Drew did what he had to be ready to pitch at the next level.”
Strasburg will have to get used to Triple-A batters. And while the International League doesn’t have the young prospects seen in Double-A, it’s hitters tend to have a more patient approach because there are so many older veterans.
“There are more experienced players,” Rizzo said. “They have a little bit more pitch selection. They have a little more of an experience level. It’s usually a more difficult level of performance. That’s the way we see him – his next progression is there. He’s got things he’s taken from Double-A he’s going to take to Triple-A. And he’ll take his progression from there.”
For his part, Storen had a .96 ERA in seven games with Harrisburg. He allowed five hits and one walk in 9 1/3 AA innings and gave up just one run. Entering Monday’s action, he had pitched twice for Syracuse with five hits allowed in 2 2/3 innings. He has yet to walk a batter and allowed just one run.
“Storen is doing extremely well,” said Rizzo. “His stuff is firmer than it was in Double-A. He’s already been up to 96 (miles-per-hour) a couple times, pitching at 94, 95. He’s getting a taste for more veteran hitters and coming into situations with more disciplined hitters. It’s a good stage for him. It’s a good step for him to be developed at that rate.”
