Stephen Strasburg has a strained flexor mass in his elbow and the Washington Nationals dont know when he will pitch again, but the team said it was relieved the right-hander did not re-tear a ligament.
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Nationals Manager Dusty Baker said he “did a lot of praying” Wednesday night that the injury was not as bad as it could have been.
That last MRI was done in May before Strasburg signed a seven-year, $175 million extension.
“We have young guys here that I know they can throw”, catcher Jose Lobaton said. Among pitchers with at least 140 innings pitched, Strasburg boasts the third-best FIP in the majors behind just Noah Syndergaard and Jose Fernandez. Strasburg has been diagnosed with a flexor mass strain, which is not a serious injury. This overuse makes them particularly subject to inflammation and injury, including debilitating injuries. Other pitchers who have recently had some kind of injury to the flexor tendon or muscle include Aaron Nola, Wade Davis, and George Kontos.
Asked about timing, Lessard said: Im thinking lets take care of the swelling and get him to a pain-free range of motion, and then well start a strengthening program. The good news for Nationals fans is the ace’s elbow ligaments were not damaged, including the important UCL, meaning he will not require a second Tommy John surgery.
So what does this mean for the rest of Strasburg’s season?
Cole, Giolito and Lopez are, Baker said, going to be pitching deeper into a season than they have before in their careers.
“It’s not a season-ending injury”, he added. The then-Yankees closer didn’t stay on the disabled list too long though, as his next appearance was just under one month later.
If Strasburg can not return, whether because he is not healthy in time to do so or because the Nationals do not want to risk pushing him, the Nationals have a major hole in their potential playoff rotation. If the Nationals and company were not anxious about Strasburg returning, they may be anxious once again.
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Strasburg returned to the mound Wednesday after being placed on the 15-day disabled list on August 22. “We got that out of there”, Lessard said. Do we move forward as if it’s possible we won’t have Stephen, or do we not count Stephen out?
