Nationals Get Disappointing Injury Update on Stephen Strasburg

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

As the Washington Nationals face the Atlanta Braves in an Opening Day 2023 matchup, fans wonder when they'll see starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg back on the mound. After all, the three-time MLB All-Star suffered a setback rehabbing from thoracic outlet syndrome last month, leaving his playing future up in the air.

Unfortunately, it's going to be at least a few months before Strasburg steps foot on the mound. FOX5's Steve Chenevey reported on Thursday that the Nationals have officially placed the former NL Cy Young finalist on the 60-day injured list, meaning he can't suit up until late May at the earliest.

Stephen Strasburg Injury Update

The news from there doesn't get much better for the Nationals faithful. Team president and general manager Mike Rizzo revealed Thursday that Strasburg's rehab program "doesn't involve any baseball activities," per insider Mark Zuckerman, and that the veteran hurler is mostly focusing on rest.

Strasburg's MLB career has been nearly non-existent since signing a massive seven-year, $245 million deal back in December 2019. Since then, the 34-year-old has pitched just 31 1/3 innings over eight starts, going 1-4 with a 6.89 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP.

If Strasburg barely plays again this season, it's hard to imagine him having much of a future in Washington. He isn't getting any younger and the chances are that his best days are behind him. With the Nationals unlikely to challenge for a World Series in the next few years, it might be easier for both sides if he just rode off into the sunset.

Still, you can never say never in sports. If Strasburg somehow finds a way to put his injury woes behind him and return to form, it'd easily be one of the best stories of the 2023 MLB season.

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.