Buster Olney had a post on ESPN saying that presumed #1 draft pick Steven Strasburg is possibly the best prospect ever. This is a change from last season when people were saying that while he was good, and easily the top pick, it wasn’t because he was historically good. Just a great prospect in a bad class. Somehow over the last year, that assessment has changed. Of course, this is important for Nats fans because it is assumed that they will select him in the draft.
I recommend reading the article, but here are a few highlights
- He’s way better than Mark Prior was (Prior was considered the #1 prospect but the Twins took Mauer due to possible signability issues)
- His 100 mph-ish fastball cuts, it has movement
- His secondary pitches are great
- “Right now, he’s better than A.J. Burnett.”
Buster also lists 6 reasons why the Nats will take him. I don’t need 6, I only need 1, as long as they end up taking him. Within Olney’s post, there’s a link to a Keith Law post for Insiders. If you can’t read it, even Mr Law, Snarky Anderson himself seems convinced that this guy is super special. He says that he’s among the best college pitchers ever. And for those of you that like stats, he also mentions that Strasburg has struck out 58% of batters he’s faced this season.