Should Strasburg Be On NL All Star Team?

[UNHWildCats]

Has he done enough to deserve a spot on the NL All Star Roster? Or should he be picked simply because he is who the fans want to see?

[AZGrizFan]

It's a popularity contest. He should be on the team.

[Rob Iola]

Travis, you left out the obvious choice:

- Yes, because he gives the NL the best chance to win.

[UNHWildCats]

Travis, you left out the obvious choice:

- Yes, because he gives the NL the best chance to win.

are you serious?

[AZGrizFan]

Travis, you left out the obvious choice:

- Yes, because he gives the NL the best chance to win.

are you serious?

Yes, he is.

[Ivytalk]

I'm old enough to remember the David Clyde "phenomenon" of 1973 when, as a Houston high school kid with a blazing fastball, he was supposed to save the Texas Rangers franchise. He promptly fizzled out.

Strasburg appears to be the real deal with maturity and filthy stuff. I look forward to his pitching against the better NL hitting teams -- particularly the second time around. Time will tell. But Nats fans tend to be bandwagoners. Where are they the four nights out of five that Strasburg isn't starting?

[93henfan]

I've seen enough now to form an opinion that Strasburg really is all that and a bag of Snyders of Hanover buffalo wing pretzel pieces.

AZGriz is right on with his comment. MLB has made All-Star balloting into an internet-driven popularity contest. Why not put Strasburg on the team? There are a lot of viewers in the DC TV market that would watch that likely haven't watched an All-Star game in decades. There's not really a drawback to it, IMHO.

[SunCoastBlueHen]

The All-star game is simply a spectacle for the fans involving the players the fans most want to see. Strasburg is (currently) a spectacle in and of himself. As such, he should be on the All-star team. Pretty simple.

[SuperHornet]

For every "he doesn't belong" argument, there's the Terry Steinbach response. Nobody wanted him on the AL team, and then he almost singlehandedly battered the NL into submission; I believe that he earned MVP honors that day.

[Rob Iola]

The All-star game is simply a spectacle for the fans involving the players the fans most want to see. Strasburg is (currently) a spectacle in and of himself. As such, he should be on the All-star team. Pretty simple.

Actually it's more than that, no? Doesn't the winning league get home field advantage in the World Series? Hence the incentive to field your best team, with the league's best pitchers...

[SunCoastBlueHen]

The All-star game is simply a spectacle for the fans involving the players the fans most want to see. Strasburg is (currently) a spectacle in and of himself. As such, he should be on the All-star team. Pretty simple.

Actually it's more than that, no? Doesn't the winning league get home field advantage in the World Series? Hence the incentive to field your best team, with the league's best pitchers...

Your point is true enough, but I'm not sure how much influence that has on who is selected to the team. All the same, I would feel just as confident with Strasburg on the mound for an inning or two as any other NL pitcher.

[blueballs]

NO

[BlueHen86]

It's a popularity contest. He should be on the team.

[89Hen]

Has he done enough to deserve a spot on the NL All Star Roster?

Yes. He's single-handedly already sold more tickets than any one player in a LONG time.

[Ivytalk]

His fastball flattened out a bit against the Braves last night, and he got a bit wild. But, to his credit, the Nats' defense stunk.

Braves crowd will be back to the normal 15K tonight.

[DJH]

Travis, you left out the obvious choice:

- Yes, because he gives the NL the best chance to win.

This is absolutely the correct answer.

Since Bud Selig and the MLB made this RIDICULOUS rule that the winner of an exhibition all star game gets homefield advantage in the WS, players should absolutely be picked on the thought of who gives you the best chance to win. Strasburg has proven to be one of the best pitchers in the league so far, so he clearly gives you a great chance to win when pitching, so you have to pick him.

If this were simply an all star game, with no WS stipulation, then you should definitely pick guys who have better 'earned' it. But when homefield advantage is on the line, then you HAVE to pick the players that give you the best chance to win. I don't think most people want to see players from the Royals and Nationals decide who gets homefield advantage between the Phillies and Yankees in October, but apparently thats what the backwards thinkers at the MLB believe is right.

MLB can't have it both ways.

[UNHWildCats]

how does 1 pitcher who would likely pitch 1 inning give the NL a better chance to win then anyone else on the team? Maybe if he was going to go 6 or 7 innings.

There is no one player who can be identified right now as giving any team a better chance then the other of winning. A team will win because one or two players will show up with a hot bat, or if an entire teams pitching staff shows up lights out. No one pitcher gives any one the best chance to win an All Star game.

[Col Hogan]

I voted no because he hasn't earned it...yet

Strasburg will play in many All-Star games if he stays healthy...

I'm going to see his next game...this Saturday vs. the Mets...

[DJH]

how does 1 pitcher who would likely pitch 1 inning give the NL a better chance to win then anyone else on the team? Maybe if he was going to go 6 or 7 innings.

There is no one player who can be identified right now as giving any team a better chance then the other of winning. A team will win because one or two players will show up with a hot bat, or if an entire teams pitching staff shows up lights out. No one pitcher gives any one the best chance to win an All Star game.

huh? What a ridiculous argument.

[Rob Iola]

how does 1 pitcher who would likely pitch 1 inning give the NL a better chance to win then anyone else on the team? Maybe if he was going to go 6 or 7 innings.

There is no one player who can be identified right now as giving any team a better chance then the other of winning. A team will win because one or two players will show up with a hot bat, or if an entire teams pitching staff shows up lights out. No one pitcher gives any one the best chance to win an All Star game.

huh? What a ridiculous argument.

Look who made it...
Strasburg is the natural closer - if the NL has the lead late he's the best bet for holding the AL scoreless for 1 or even 2 innings - he's the most dominant pitcher in the NL...

[UNHWildCats]

huh? What a ridiculous argument.

Look who made it...
Strasburg is the natural closer - if the NL has the lead late he's the best bet for holding the AL scoreless for 1 or even 2 innings - he's the most dominant pitcher in the NL...

so saying he gives them the best chance of winning and then basing that on hoping the NL has the lead in the 9th inning so he can save the game and you think my argument is ridiculous?

[Rob Iola]

Look who made it...
Strasburg is the natural closer - if the NL has the lead late he's the best bet for holding the AL scoreless for 1 or even 2 innings - he's the most dominant pitcher in the NL...

so saying he gives them the best chance of winning and then basing that on hoping the NL has the lead in the 9th inning so he can save the game and you think my argument is ridiculous?

um, yes Travis, that's exactly what I'm saying...

But if you prefer, he can start, hold the AL scoreless for 3 innings, and essentially make it a 6 inning game for them to score...

Either way, right now he's the most dominant pitcher in baseball - put him on a major league caliber team, let alone an allstar team, and he's unbeatable...

[UNHWildCats]

so saying he gives them the best chance of winning and then basing that on hoping the NL has the lead in the 9th inning so he can save the game and you think my argument is ridiculous?

um, yes Travis, that's exactly what I'm saying...

But if you prefer, he can start, hold the AL scoreless for 3 innings, and essentially make it a 6 inning game for them to score...

Either way, right now he's the most dominant pitcher in baseball - put him on a major league caliber team, let alone an allstar team, and he's unbeatable...

First off aside from extra inning games pitchers dont go 3 innings in an all star game, especially if said pitcher will be starting the first game after the break. Maddux was the last to go 3 innings in a non extra inning game and that was in 1995. Even Pedro Martinez didnt go three when he struck out 5 of 6 batters in 1999 and was making the NL hitters look like children in front of his home crowd.

Second, while Strasburg maybe the most dominant pitcher in the NL, Boston's Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz can make serious arguments for being the most dominant in baseball right now.

Strasburg 2-2 with a 2.27 ERA over his first 5 starts,
Lester 6-1 with a 1.75 ERA in his last 8 games
Buchholz 7-1 with a 1.59 ERA in his last 9 games

[MrTitleist]

No to Strasburg. Dude has pitched against not the best baseball has to offer. They cherry picked his first start against the worst team in MLB over the last 25 years. He might be fine and dandy now but AL sluggers aren't going to stand for his shenanigans.