Stephen Strasburg struggled on the mound in St. Louis, in his second start of 2021, giving up eight hits, five walks, and seven earned runs in just four innings, over which he threw a total of 88 pitches (just 50 for strikes). Strasburg, 32, never looked right on the mound, he was falling off to the first base side, his velocity was down, and during the game, a camera in Busch Stadium caught him down in a tunnel off the visitor’s dugout massaging his right shoulder/neck area.
After what ended up a 14-3 loss to the Cardinals, Washington’s skipper talked about what was off for the Nationals’ right-hander, who missed most of last season with carpal tunnel neuritis in his right hand that eventually required surgery, and he said he thought it was a mechanical thing more than anything concerning for Strasburg health-wise.