The Washington Nationals really had no other choice. Picking Stephen Strasburg first overall in Tuesday's MLB amateur draft was the only move they could possibly make. That 103 mph fastball, a pitcher already with some polish - even with Scott Boras as the agent. The other 29 teams would have all done the same thing.
“He’s a tremendous pitching package,” Nationals acting general manager Mike Rizzo told the AP. “We weren’t going to pass on the best player in the draft.”
Now is the interesting part. The negotiation. It promises to be an interesting battle of wills.
Boras wants historic money for Strasburg, and he'll almost certainly get it. He'll get more than $10.5 million, which is what Mark Prior received from the Cubs back in 2001. But Boras wants a contract similar to what the Red Sox gave his client Daisuke Matsuzaka ($52 million over six years) and that's positively ridiculous for a pitcher yet to throw a pro pitch. Remember that Matsuzaka was the best pitcher in Japan, and had acquainted himself well in the World Baseball Classic against the best in the majors.
The deadline to sign Strasburg is Aug. 15. Expect something to happen around Aug. 14, around 11 p.m.
Who did your favorite team take? Check out a recap of the first round of the draft.
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