Kershaw wasn’t the only star pitcher on a first-place team in the National League that suffered an injury on Sunday. In a remarkably similar circumstance that occurred around the same time, Stephen Strasburg was lifted from his start against the Diamondbacks after two innings of work.
The Nationals are calling his removal purely precautionary and there are no plans, at least at the moment, to place the right-hander on the disabled list.
Strasburg labored through his two innings, throwing a total of 51 pitches and issuing three walks in the process. Strasburg admitted that he had trouble getting loose and noted that his forearm felt tight and achy.
He was wise to shut it down at the first sign of discomfort rather than attempting to pitch through the issue and potentially make it worse. He said as much when interviewed after the game, “"I think it's just something that's still kind of lingering… I just want to nip it in the bud now, not miss any time and try to be smart about it."
He’ll be re-evaluated by team doctors when the club travels back home to Washington on Tuesday. Although no MRI is currently scheduled, it would be surprising if they didn’t at least check to ensure there’s no structural damage there.
The 29-year-old hurler is enjoying another terrific season. He sits at 10-3 on the year with a 3.25 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 141/37 K/BB ratio in 121 2/3 innings.
The Nationals, like the Dodgers, are well-positioned to handle an injury in the short term. After Sunday’s victory over the Diamondbacks they sit at 59-38 and own a commanding 12 game advantage over the second-place Braves in the National League East.
Fantasy owners should have a contingency plan in place in the event that Strasburg isn’t able to make his scheduled start this week, but it doesn’t seem at the moment as if he’s heading to the disabled list.
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