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Shanoff’s WUC: Strasburg Exceeds The Hype

Jun 9, 2010, 11:37 AM UTC

Today’s Calls: Stephen Strasburg vs. Phenomenon, Derek Fisher vs. Finals Heroics, Nebraska vs. the Big Ten, Tom Izzo vs. Michigan State, Amare vs. the Suns, Armando Galarraga vs. Reality, Zack Greinke vs. Jeff Niemann, Golden Tate vs. Pastry, Pete Rose vs. Corked Bats and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: Whoa.â†µ

â†µâ†µHype is cheap -- perhaps the cheapest currency in sports (next to punditry!)â†µ

â†µâ†µBut every once in a while -- and its rarity is what makes it so special -- hype isn’t just matched. It is exceeded.â†µ

â†µâ†µAnd that is what happened last night in Washington, D.C., when Stephen Strasburg struck out 14 Pirates (with zero walks!) in 7 innings (on 94 pitches!), 65 for strikes and too many to count that fell somewhere in the “filthy/nasty/jaw-dropping” range. â†µ

â†µâ†µThat would be a career night for 99 percent of pitchers who have ever stepped on a Major League mound. Strasburg did it in his first-ever MLB game.â†µ

â†µâ†µIt is very hard to imagine what Strasburg can do to top this introduction. Strike out more than 14? Do it against a lineup a little bit more challenging than the Pirates? Do it in a playoff game?â†µ

â†µâ†µBefore last night, Strasburg wasn’t a phenomenon -- he was hype.â†µ

â†µâ†µNow he’s a phenomenon. â†µ

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â†µLakers yank back NBA Finals momentum: Just when you thought the Celtics had solved the Lakers with that Game 2 win in LA, the defending champs come back and grit out a Game 3 win in Boston. Apparently, Ray Allen left all of his shooting mojo back in LA. Meanwhile, it is impossible not to root for 35-year-old Derek Fisher just ripping the Celtics' hearts out in the 4th quarter.â†µ

â†µâ†µNebraska to Big Ten? If this account is right, hold on to your husks: â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Nebraska to the Big Ten probably means Mizzou goes, too. Although that gives the Big Ten 13 teams; the league would need to grab either 1 or 3 more teams for balance. â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Suddenly, the Big 12 is imploding; the league would be wise to try to grab TCU and, say, Utah to fill their spots before the Pac-10 makes an offer to the Big 12’s Texas and Oklahoma schools (and possibly Colorado). â†µ

â†µâ†µ• If those schools jump to the West Coast league, the Big 12 -- basically Kansas, K-State and Iowa State -- either withers or it can try to grab the best remaining teams (BYU, Boise State, TCU) and save itself.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Notre Dame would presumably stay independent. More power to them.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• The SEC -- still the strongest conference in the country -- should feel no pressure to expand, but if they get the itch, there are a couple of ACC schools that might fit (Florida State, Georgia Tech).â†µ

â†µâ†µTom Izzo to Cavs? I remain boggled and baffled that this hasn’t been debunked yet. Could Izzo really be considering this? For goodness’ sake: Why? The Cavs are about to be in ruins. And even if LeBron returned, does Izzo really want to be a pro coach? Really? Most of all, it sends a terrible signal to Michigan State players, recruits and fans that his heart really isn’t in East Lansing anymore. (Something that is baffling, given that his team should be considered the favorite to win the national title next year.) I still think this fizzles, but that it has gone on this long is insane.â†µ

â†µâ†µ(OK: I cannot believe we have to have this conversation, but ... So who does Michigan State hire if Izzo leaves? I would take the money earmarked for Izzo and immediately offer it to Butler’s Brad Stevens or Memphis’ Josh Pastner, the two best college hoops coaches under 40 in the country. Make a hire that will last 15-20 years -- with a coach who feels like a college hoops lifer.)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Free Agency: Is it really a surprise that Amare is opting out of his contract to join the free agency party? He is one of the B-tier FAs that will need to wait for LeBron and Wade to sort themselves out before finding a spot.â†µ

â†µâ†µArmando Galarraga’s next start: Umm, a no-decision? At least he’s got the Imperfect Game to fall back on. That would be the upside of the whole “immortality” thing.â†µ

â†µâ†µStanley Cup Game 6: It’s all on Leighton.â†µ

â†µâ†µBobby Valentine to Orioles? At least he would give the woeful O’s a colorful character managing the team -- it’s better than nothing, particularly with the nearby Nats hogging all the attention.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Talking Points:â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Mike Stanton’s debut: 3/5, 2 R.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Greinke Pity: Now 1-8.â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Walk-Off Watch: Ike! McGehee!â†µ

â†µâ†µ• Fantasy Stud: Niemann (2-H CG SO).â†µ

â†µâ†µ• All-Star Voting: Here comes Heyward.â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL Offseason: “Seahawks WR Tate warned after pastry incident” just about says it all. Your career will be defined when you are attached to anything labeled a “pastry incident.”â†µ

â†µâ†µSN Camp Countdown: Eagles. No player in the NFC will have more eyes on him than Kevin Kolb (except, perhaps, for the guy he replaced, Donovan McNabb).â†µ

â†µâ†µPete Rose had corked bats? I certainly believe it. Further, I suspect that corked bats were the HGH of the 1980s or amphetamines of the 70s -- a lot more people were doing it than you think.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: Strasburg. (It’s worth saying again.)â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

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This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.

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