Fan News

The baseball world got a dose of disappointing news with word that Washington Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg will need Tommy John surgery.

The now famous ligament replacement procedure has been performed on seemingly a countless number of baseball players. Yet, the surgery is no guarantee.

Since former big leaguer Tommy John had the surgery, superstar pitchers and minor leaguers alike have gone under the knife.  While some have recovered to enjoy lengthy, successful careers, there are a number of hurlers who were never the same after going under the knife.

Making the rounds right now is the news that Stephen Strasburg will likely have to undergo Tommy John surgery, meaning he would miss the rest of 2010, but also all of 2011. This is bad not just for Strasburg and the Nationals, but for baseball as well. The most hyped prospect since, well, another pitcher who will show up on this list, he was set for great things.

By now the baseball world is well aware that the National League Most Valuable Player race has essentially come down to two NL Central first basemen currently chasing the Triple Crown.

Barring a huge slump on either of their parts or a huge surge by another candidate—crazier things have happened, and Adrian Gonzalez looms in the shadows—the NL MVP is going to go to one of these two players.

So how close is the race between them? Shockingly close.

They are in a statistical dead heat.

Fans had to wait longer than they wanted to see Stephen Strasburg make his MLB debut.

Well, now they will have to wait even longer to see him pitch again.

The Washington Nationals' rookie phenom has a tear in his ulnar collateral ligament, which will require Tommy John surgery.

While Strasburg will seek a second opinion, he will likely be out for at least a year, and up to 18 months. 

Strasburg threw 68 innings in 12 starts, going 5-3 with 92 strikeouts, 17 walks and a 2.91 ERA.

Baseball's newest pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals has been on and off of the DL in recent weeks, and the Nationals have had their concerns about Strasburg's condition.

If only they knew that Strasburg had suffered a career-threatening injury. Their crown gem, the number one overall pick in the 2009 Draft—Strasburg is the present and future of the franchise.

They are the two words no pitcher wants to hear, but for Washington Nationals phenom prospect Stephen Strasburg, it appears "Tommy John" will soon enter his vocabulary.

The right-hander who took baseball by storm this summer appears headed for surgery, much to the dismay of the Nationals organization and baseball fans alike.

It is a very tough blow for a pitcher that not only the Nationals, but Major League Baseball as well, anticipate will be a star for the next decade.

Here is the latest on the injury concerns regarding baseball's top prospect.

Somehow, I saw this coming. It wasn't what I was hoping would happen, but I just had a feeling this kind of news was coming.

Today, it did come. According to Brent Gambill, an executive producer of MLB Network Radio, is reporting that former San Diego State standout, and the first overall pick of the Washington Nationals in the 2009 Amateur Draft, Stephen Strasburg, will undergo Tommy John surgery.

Just when things were beginning to look up for the Washington Nationals it is being reported (via twitter) on ESPN 980 in Washington D.C. that Stephen Strasburg has a significant ligament tear in his right elbow and may need Tommy John surgery.

Tommy John surgery or ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction is where a ligament in the elbow is replaced by a tendon from the patient's forearm.

In the past this would almost spell the end of a pitching career or hamper it.

However, the full recovery rate from this surgery is now between 85 and 92 percent.

It is time for Major League Baseball to realign and expand.  The antiquated notion of having separate American and National Leagues, with separate rules for each is no longer a quaint idiosyncrasy, but an annoying inconsistency.  The League could clean up the evil that is the designated hitter, create better geographic rivalries, and expand its product all in one fell swoop.  It would be a three-pronged plan: 1) Expand to 32 teams, 2) Create eight divisio

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