Strasburg scratched from start

The potential first step of their nightmare scenario unfolded Tuesday night when the Washington Nationals scratched Stephen Strasburg from his start against the Atlanta Braves after "having trouble getting loose in the bullpen," General Manager Mike Rizzo said.

The Nationals consider Strasburg day-to-day, Rizzo said during the opening innings, but they are taking significant measures to gauge his health. Strasburg saw the Nationals' team doctor during the game and will receive an MRI exam and an X-ray on his right arm, perhaps the most valuable appendage in baseball.

"I pulled the plug on it," Rizzo said. "Precautionary move. Erring on the side of caution, I just didn't want him to go out there when he was struggling to get loose in the bullpen pregame."

Strasburg had no symptoms and offered no warnings this week, Rizzo said. He threw a clean bullpen session over the weekend and felt fine after playing catch Monday. Rizzo did not specify which part of Strasburg's arm could not loosen, but he did allow the trouble occurred in Strasburg's right arm.

"There's no pain," Rizzo said. "There's no shooting pains or anything like that in the shoulder or elbow. He was just struggling to get loose."

As Strasburg was finishing his pregame warmup, pitching coach Steve McCatty told trainer Lee Kuntz that Strasburg was having trouble warming up. Kuntz called Rizzo in his Nationals Park office, and Rizzo made the decision.

"He did understand," Rizzo said. "Those are the decisions I get paid to make. We're going to err on the side of caution. I'll make the decisions and take the heat for it. He's a very competitive person. The decision was made by me, and he's fine" with it.

Rizzo did not speculate on what the ailment could be. He intimated the problem may have sprung from a full season of pitching every fifth day for the first time. In college, Strasburg started only on weekends, and he is only growing familiar with the routine of a professional pitcher.

"We're going to use common sense and be cautious like we have," Rizzo said. "This is a workload that he's never seen before. We're going to take it from there. It's a precautionary move. We're going to see what our next step is. He's day-to-day. We'll see how he responds tomorrow."

Strasburg has been scratched before. In the Arizona Fall League last year, he was scratched with a stiff neck. Before the final start of his season, Strasburg heard a "pop" in his knee. Both ailments amounted to nothing more than temporary inconveniences.

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First game Heyward was hurt now Strasburg!

Looks like he'll miss Sunday's game too ..

Since superphenom Stephen Strasburg will be shut down for the next couple of days and will probably miss his next bullpen session, his tentatively scheduled start on Sunday against Phillies is in question.
Mark Zuckerman writes that he would need to have a full-speed bullpen on Friday in order to make his Sunday start, and that the team is preaching caution, caution and more caution. Strasburg himself sounds optimistic, saying that he got his range of motion back in his shoulder, but the team will probably hold him back to make sure he's fine. Seems like the right move.

Stephen Strasburg