5. McCatty Slaps Dugout Wall: Stephen Strasburg stood on the mound in Philadelphia in a sweat-soaked gray Nats away uniform with the red stirrup socks pulled high and the navy blue curly-W cap pulled down low over his forehead. The Nats' starter made several obviously frustrated but subtle motions to the Nats' bench asking for Washington's manager, trainer and pitching coach to join him on the mound following a changeup to Philly outfielder Domonic Brown that had caused a pain sharp enough for Strasburg to yank his arm back and noticeably grimace. It was the 53rd pitch he'd thrown that day, and the last he threw in his rookie campaign. The 23-year-old right-hander reportedly argued to be allowed to remain in the game, but was overruled, and as the Nats' '09 no.1 overall pick disappeared down the dugout steps and into the visiting team's clubhouse in Citizens Bank Park, Nationals' pitching coach Steve McCatty took his anger out on a dugout wall with a pronounced slap that told anyone paying attention that he knew what had just happened to the top arm in the Nats' organization. Did he know that Strasburg had torn his ulner collateral ligament? Who knows? Anyone who's seen an accute injury occur to a pitcher's elbow probably could have guessed, but it wasn't until DC GM Mike Rizzo made the official announcement six days later that the extent of the injury was revealed, "After reviewing the MRI Arthrogram last night, we've come to the conclusion that Stephen Strasburg has a significant tear of his ulnar collateral ligament that will probably require Tommy John Surgery." McCatty's slap of the dugout wall expressed all Nats fan's frustrations.
Filed under: