Washington Nationals pitching prospect and first overall pick in the June 2009 draft made his professional debut yesterday, after months of mounting anticipation. After posting impressive spring numbers, Strasburg was assigned to Double-A Harrisburg with the knowledge that if he does well, he would be up in Washington in the near future.
Strasburg allowed four runs in his debut - one earned - over five innings of work. The earned run came in the first inning, and the three unearned runs came on two errors in the third inning.
Overall, Strasburg's fastball sat in the 97-98 mph range, with a good mix of off speed pitches. He struck out eight batters overall and finished with 82 pitches. Expect Strasburg to be kept in the 80-100 range, as the Nationals will be very cautious moving forward with their top prospect.