http://0rz.tw/oW45p Got my second look at SDSU right-hander Stephen Strasburg on Friday night at Tony Gywnn Stadium. Reminded me a lot of the first time I saw him: Many ugly swings, not much contact. Strasburg allowed two hits and two walks over seven shutout innings against BYU. He struck out 15. Yawn. The two hits were singles. The first came in the fourth and was a bouncer up the middle that got through the infield. The second came in the sixth and was a soft liner to right-center. As in my previous Strasburg sighting, he allowed one well-hit ball all night. That came in the third, when BYU first baseman Kasey Ko flied to the warning track in left. Ko sat on a 2-0 fastball and hammered it. He was late on the pitch and didn’t make great contact (I heard some folks nearby comment that it would’ve broken a wood bat, and I’m inclined to agree), but the ball came in hard and so it went out the same way. Again, I didn’t see any radar readings but I doubt they would have told me anything I hadn’t already figured out just using my eyes and ears. Guys were late all night against the fastball, and they had no clue what to do with his breaking ball. Strasburg gets batters out with his breaking ball two different ways. The first is to start the pitch inside toward a right-handed hitter, whose knees typically buckle, and then bend it back over the plate for a called strike. The second is to start it down the middle so that it darts down and away from right-handers. As I’ve said before, because Strasburg throws so hard, it’s impossible to look for anything other than his fastball. Consequently, batters will lunge at the breaking ball down and away, often missing the ball by a foot or more. Strasburg has received a great deal of hype, and deservedly so. I don’t have much to add that hasn’t already been said. And even if I did, I’m not sure I ’d say it. Talent like his doesn’t need hype. It just needs health and an audience. --

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