Strasburg an All-Star?

By now, I'm sure you have seen a glimpse, or a highlight, or some sort of footage of Stephen Strasburg.  The man, excuse me, young kid, is legit.  He takes the hill every start armed with a 98-100 mph fastball, a 89-91 mph change-up that darts straight down, and a 82-84 MPH curve ball that drops quicker than the world rankings of England's National Soccer (Futbol) team. 

His early success is obviously great for the game of baseball, and more importantly, great for the often putrid and meager Washington Nationals organization.  But does Stephen Strasburg deserve a spot on the National League All-Star team? 

I say absolutely YES!

Though a small sample size thus far, his numbers projected out over a 162 season merit rewarding the kid with a spot on the roster.  Its not Strasburg's fault he didn't start the season with the big league team in Washington. 

Through 4 starts, Strasburg is 2-1 with 1.78 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and an amazing 41 K's in just 25.1 innings pitched.

With the winner of the All-Star game being rewarded with home field advantage for its representative in the World Series, why wouldn't you want Stephen Strasburg on the roster to toss an inning or two for your guys?  The St. Louis Cardinals, L.A. Dodgers, New York Mets, or any of the other contenders can use Strasburg's Golden Arm to benefit themselves in any way, so why not put the kid on center stage and hope he puts up a goose-egg or two and maybe a couple of backwards K's.  Wouldn't that be fun? 

While we're at it, since this is proclaimed "The Year of the Pitcher" and Strasburg is the "FUTURE" pitching star of the league, just showcase the kid and let him start.

Let's look at the pitching the National League could throw out there, if of course, their goal is to actually go out and win the game.

Stephen Strasburg 2 IP
Tim Lincecum 2 IP
Chris Carpenter 2 IP
Josh Johnson 2 IP
Ubaldo Jimenez 1 IP

(By the way, you would have Adam Wainwright and Roy Halladay on the bench.  And, if you wanted to use a traditional closer, I guess Billy Wagner wouldn't be a bad choice either.)

I'd use Ubaldo to close.  Who in their right mind really likes swinging off that man, especially if he knows he can come in and gun sling for just 1 inning?  The Rockies starter regularly hits 99 MPH deep into games, so if he ramps it up for just one inning, to quote Usher, "Oh My God..."

The National League is loaded with pitching, yes.  And it may not seem fair to give a kid a spot on the All-Star roster after only 7 or 8 starts.  But for the love of the game, fans, and for winning, please place this young phenom on the team and give the National League the best chance to win possible. 

"The Year of the Pitcher" sure has been fun.  Let's see if the National League can pitch themselves to home field advantage in the World Series and hope that Stephen Strasburg can help them do it. 

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