Strasburg makes a quick, lasting impression

Time of course, will tell if Stephen Strasburg winds up with a plaque in Cooperstown, but so far the Washington Nationals phenom (I’ve always love that word) has lived up to his prodigious advance billing.

The thing that impressed me most during his 6 1/3-innings of shutout dominance against the Rochester Red Wings Wednesday night wasn’t his explosive 99-mph fastball, but his competitiveness and his pitching acumen. He kept the Wings hitters completely off-balance by mixing in an occasional sweeping curve or change up. Of the 23 batters he faced, only two really hit the ball hard. And Strasburg didn’t get flustered after two men reached on walks and two others reached on errors.

Toward the end, the Syracuse Chiefs fireballer was toying with the Wings, striking out six of the final seven batters he faced. Seven of his victims were completely frozen by off-speed pitches.

It all made for a very enjoyable night for the standing-room only crowd of 12,590 who showed up at Frontier Field.

A tip of the cap to Rochester’s classy and knowledgeable baseball fans. After Strasburg completed his 9-strikeout, 3-hit outing to improve his record to 3-0 in Triple-A, he received a standing ovation. Of course, it would have been nice if Strasburg had acknowledged them with a tip of the cap, but the 21-year-old is so intense and he claimed he was somewhat surprised because he had never received a road ovation before. If I’m the Nationals brass, I think I’d gently tell him that some sort of acknowledgment would be appropriate. Otherwise, an appreciative crowd will turn into a booing crowd, as it did at Frontier, because it believes it’s been snubbed by yet another conceited athlete.

Although Strasburg contributed to another Wings loss, I was happy to see him put on a memorable performance. Like other fans of baseball history, I want to be able to say I saw the young pitcher at his best before he was promoted to the major leagues and went on to a Hall of Fame career.

As is usually the case with big events, the Wings did another stellar job as hosts. The only glitches were when the speed pitch gauge beyond the left field bullpen didn’t register the mph of some of Strasburg’s pitches. Apparently, some folks in a restricted area actually walked in front of the radar gun. It worked OK, though, in the first inning when 15 of Strasburg’s 18 pitches topped 94 mph, with three of them reaching 99. That obviously added to the fans and players sense of awe.

So here are the staggering numbers for the Nationals’ $15-million arm so far: He is 6-1 with a 0.89 earned run average in his seven starts between Triple-A Syracuse and Double-A Harrisburg. In 40 1-3 innings, he has struck out 49 batters and yielded just 17 hits and 10 walks. Opposing hitters are batting an anemic .124 (17-for-137) against him.

The two-time San Diego State All-American and No. 1 overall draft pick is expected to make two more starts for the Chiefs before being called up. It’s almost certain he will make his first big-league start June 4 in Washington.

Expect a packed house. And expect greatness, because barring injury this kid looks like he could have a career that lives up to the enormous hype.

***

When my long-time friend and colleague Jim Mandelaro and I walked out of Frontier Field after filing our stories Wednesday night we were surprised to see about 200 fans waiting patiently behind a string of saw horses that had been set. Two of my friends and fellow 19th century base ballists - Ryan Brecker and Joe Territo - were among the hoard waiting to procure an autograph from Strasburg. Ryan told me in an e-mail that his and Joe's patience paid off. He said Strasburg was very accommodating and signed for about 10 minutes before heading back to the team hotel. You like to heard that stuff.

Mother Nature sidelines Strasburg

They don't call us Rainchester for nothing. Pitching phenom Stepehn Strasburg was scheduled to show off his 100 mph heater against the Red Wings at packed Frontier Tuesday night, but an unforecasted day-long drenching postponed the festivities.

Not to worry.

Strasburg, one of the top pitching prospects in baseball history, has been re-scheduled to pitch Wednesday night at 7 p.m. when the Syracuse Chiefs play a day-night doubleheader vs. the Wings.

To see why this is a big-deal, please read my previous post.

Stpehen Strasburg will give us a night to remember

I admit it. Even if I weren’t covering Stephen Strasburg’s highly anticipated appearance tonight for The Associated Press, I probably would have journeyed to Frontier Field any way – just so I could say I caught a glimpse of the 21-year-old pitching phenom with the 100-mph heater and the Cooperstown potential.

The opportunity to witness super prospects climb the rungs of the ladder – especially guys who can throw balls through brick walls or launch them over light towers – is one of the great appeals of minor-league baseball. I wish I had a dollar for every Rochesterian who told me, “I remember when Cal Ripken Jr. was just a skinny kid playing for the Red Wings.’’ I’d be rich.

So far, Strasburg, baseball’s top draft pick last June, has lived up to the humungous hype, going 2-0 for the Syracuse Chiefs, allowing just one seeing-eye base hit in 12 Triple-A innings while striking out 13. Throw in his stats for Double-A Harrisburg, and he’s 5-1 with a 1.06 earned run average, 40 strikeouts and just 8 walks in 34 innings pitched. Little wonder famished Washington baseball fans, who haven’t tasted a World Series since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House, have been clamoring for the Nationals to bring Strasburg up ASAP.

They aren’t alone.

Curt Schilling, a pitching prospect himself with the Red Wings before his stellar big-league career, already has anointed Strasburg the next great one before the kid has even thrown his first major-league pitch. “I’ve never seen anything close, not at that age,’’ Schilling said recently. “(When) he comes up, he’ll immediately, potentially, be the best pitcher in the game.’’

Nothing like putting King Kong on the kid’s back, Curt.

Sports fans, especially ones who’ve been subjected to mediocrity for long stretches, are an impatient lot. But there is wisdom in going slowly with “can’t-miss’’ pitchers, because baseball history is rife with what I call “David Clyde stories” – cautionary tales of high school and college flame-throwers who were rushed to the bigs and flamed out quickly.

Plus, there is a financial incentive to have Strasburg stay put. By not bringing him up until June 4, the Nationals will push back the pitcher’s free agent eligibility by a few seasons, thereby delaying the inevitable offers that will be made by the Yankees, Red Sox and other big-buck franchises who'll be covetous of Strasburg should he live up to his press clippings.

As a historian of Rochester baseball, it will be interesting to see how the Wings do against Strasburg. As we learned Friday night against Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman, Rochester hitters aren’t always gracious hosts when a big arm comes to Frontier. They roughed Chapman up pretty good.

The most famous mal-treatment of a pitching prospect by the Wings, of course, came on June 30, 1997, when they turned Yankees prospect Hideki Irabu into Hideki “I Rock You,’’ smacking “the Nolan Ryan of Japan’’ around for four runs in six innings. That rude greeting in front of a regular-season Frontier record crowd of 13,485 proved a harbinger of what would await Irabu in the major leagues. Failing to live up to the hype, he finished with a 34-35 record and incurred the wrath of Yankees boss, George Steinbrenner, who crudely labeled the pitcher a “fat toad.’’

Looking back, Irabu’s visit to Frontier was one of the most electric nights I’ve ever covered at our downtown ballyard. Here’s hoping tonight is every bit as exciting.

Perhaps, down the road, we’ll be able to tell people, “I saw Strasburg pitch in Rochester.’’

It's been a privilege to be a part of this charity event

I’ve been involved with the Rochester Press-Radio Club in various capacities for 20 years and I can’t remember a Day of Champions Children’s Charities dinner the equal of this year’s. It was a rousing success from start to finish and I couldn’t be more proud of the job done by the members of our all-volunteer organization. I’ve called Rochester home for more than 25 years and last night’s banquet was just a reaffirmation of what a caring community this is.

These dinners for 1,200 people are a bear to pull off and they never would take place without the tireless and generous efforts of our volunteers, especially my fellow officers, Pat Grover, Mike Kauffman and Keith Ryan. The number of hours these folks put in is mind-boggling. You talk about champions – these three truly are.

As I step down as president of the club, I’m grateful to all of our volunteers who have made the last three dinners in particular so incredible. The club has selfless, visionary people in place to carry it successfully forward, and I have no doubt that they will.

As our headliner, Drew Brees, said last night: “You don’t do something for 61 years unless you’re doing something right. This event has a great reputation around the country, but I can honestly say by being here tonight that this is one of the best events I’ve ever been to, not only because of the people in this room but because of what it stands for.’’

That’s pretty high praise from a national sports figure who’s proven to be an MVP in football – and in life. We’ve been so fortunate to land people such as Brees, Cal Ripken Jr., Joe Torre, Arnold Palmer, Emmitt Smith and Joe Montana in recent years. But we’ve also been fortunate to be able to honor local folks such as Mark Muench, whose graceful battle with brain cancer has inspired a community.

So, I hope my fellow club members take a bow and a moment to bask in the glow of their efforts. They are a remarkable group of people.

And it has been a privilege not only to work with them, but to be able to call them my friends.