By now, every baseball fan in America has heard of Stephen Strasburg. The hard throwing right handed pitcher out of San Diego State University was drafted as the first overall pick by the Washington Nationals in 2009 and signed the biggest deal as a draft pick in the history of the draft. And why not? Strasburg throws a 4 seam fastball that can reach triple digits, his 2 seam fastball is in the low to mid 90s with late movement which is absolutely deadly, his breaking ball acts a lot like a slurve with a sharp late break, and his change-up has gotten better every year. The key to his success has he’s been able to locate all of these above average pitches with ease. He has everything you would want out of your ace- but the question I pose to Washington….Is he ready to be an ace?

The Key to this kid IMO is to not put the pressures of the success of  the Washington Nationals next year on his shoulders. He has the real chance to be the face of the franchise for the next 15 years and throwing him into the fire might not be the greatest of ideas by new GM Mike Rizzo. What do I mean by that? Simple- don’t annoint him the number 1 coming out of spring training. Let him get used to the idea of pitching in the big leagues without alot of pressure. He’s going to have the career of a superstar if the Nationals play their cards right so there’s no reason to rush him. Let him get used to the daily routines, the ball parks, the fans, and the hitters before giving him the ball as the stopper every 5th day. I don’t think the Nationals are going to be contending for a World Series next year so why rush the process?  It takes time for young pitchers to be an ace so again- why rush it?

If they anoint him the ace, and he struggles coming out of the gate, they could easily lose this kid mentally and that would be a terrible shame for baseball fans everywhere not to mention the heartbreak Washington fans would ensue. Many hard throwers have flamed out due to injury, mental blocks, or a strange loss of control over the years due to some of these problems and Strasburg is not immune to that potentially happening. It’s important to take this kid aside come spring training and say “Look. We think the world of you, we’re not going to hold you back in the minors, but we’re going to limit your innings a bit this year, and your not going to be the savior this year. We’re going to put you in the 4th or 5th spot in the rotation and put you in the position to succeed while learning how to pitch to Major League hitters. We want to baby you a bit and come 2011, your the man here.”

If Washington has the patience and is able to do that, while keeping him healthy- look out. Washington might have a Tim Lincecum clone on their hands and if Washington continues to draft and develop well- It’s not out of the realm of possibility come 2013 Washington is battling for the division title.