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Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg throwing off mound for first time since being scratched from season debut

Nationals Stephen Strasburg
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Nationals got some great news Sunday morning when ace pitcher Stephen Strasburg threw from the bullpen mound.

It’s the first time he’s thrown from a mound since being scratched from what was supposed to be his season debut last week, per Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports.

Stephen Strasburg scratched due to nerve pain in his right hand

Last week, Strasburg was set to make his season debut when he experienced nerve pain in his right (pitching) hand. That caused the Nationals to scratch him, and he ended up missing two of his scheduled starts.

The good news is that it didn’t take long for Strasburg to experience relief from that pain.

“He’s in a good spot right now,” Martinez said on July 30, per MASN Sports. “He’s not feeling that little nerve issue anymore. So hopefully we can get through this and he throws better today and we can get him out on the mound soon.”

Three days later, and Strasburg is indeed on the mound. Hopefully that means he’ll be ready to make his first start of the 2020 MLB season soon.

Washington has time to get him ready, too. The Nationals’ series against the Miami Marlins was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak that has kept Miami from playing since a week ago. Their next scheduled game is Tuesday against the New York Mets.

2019 season saw Stephen Strasburg put up career-best stats

Last season was a banner campaign for the former No. 1 overall pick of the 2009 MLB Draft. He made 33 starts — his first 30-plus-start season in five years — earning a 18-6 record with a 3.32 ERA and 1.04 WHIP while striking out a career-best 251 batters.

Injuries have been a factor for Strasburg the past few seasons, so it had to be a bit concerning for Washington to see him come down with the nerve issue ahead of his first start in 2020.

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