The Washington Nationals are off to a less than ideal start to their 2020 season. Right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg won’t start in Saturday’s game against the New York Yankees due to a nerve issue in his pitching hand.
Erick Fedde will start in Strasburg’s place. Fedde lost out in battle to Austin Voth for the Nationals’ fifth starter in their rotation.
Nationals manager Davey Martinez said he hopes Strasburg is dealing with a “day-to-day” situation, according to Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. The issue extends to Strasburg’s right thumb. He received an injection to help the matter.
The Nationals’ defense of their World Series title has got off to a rocky start. The club learned top-hitter Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 a mere hours before their season opening-loss to the Yankees Thursday. It’s a loss that saw ace Max Scherzer give up four runs in 5.1 innings in a rain-shortened loss.
Now, the club has to deal with losing their second ace and the 2019 World Series MVP for his first scheduled start. Washington will have to turn to Fedde to avoid a 0-2 start to the year. Last season, Fedde posted a 4.50 ERA in 21 games and 12 starts.
