Stephen Strasburg (File photo by Don Kohlbauer)
Stephen Strasburg (3-1) continued to overwhelm his Arizona Fall League counterparts on Monday.
He pitched five innings, allowing one run on four hits while striking out six on 68 pitches. It was Strasburg’s longest outing for the Phoenix Desert Dogs after taking time off from a long season pitching for the San Diego State Aztecs.
“It’s a long progression,” he told MLB.com. “I just want to fine tune everything. You can’t settle for what you’ve done in the past. They might figure you out, so you always have to be ready. It was a pretty decent day.”
Related: Former Aztec shines in AFL debut | Strasburg roughed up in second pro outing
He was more than decent. With Nationals team President Stan Kasten in the crowd, Strasburg hit 100 mph with his fastball four times in the first inning and kept it in the high 90s his entire outing. Even the six men he struck out all went down swinging. More importantly for the rookie right-hander was his ability to keep the ball down.
The only ball that was hit well in the air was a pop fly double that could have been kept to a single had it not been for an unsuccessful diving effort from the Desert Dog outfielder. Otherwise, Strasburg limited the Surprise Rafters to nine groundball outs and zero fly balls.
“I wanted to go out and build off the previous start. Coach (Tony) Gwynn was really protective of me,” he said. “It’s a gradual progression, and I just have to stay on my program.”
Strasburg’s progression has gotten him to a 75-pitch limit which he will use Saturday when he starts for the Eastern League in the Arizona Fall League All-Star Game.
Jeff Creps is an SDNN sports contributor. Follow him on Twitter.
Tags: Phoenix Desert Dogs, San Diego State, SDNN, Stephen Strasburg
