Strasburg worked exclusively from the stretch during his first Grapefruit League start Friday against the Cardinals, the Washington Post reports. "I feel like as I've gotten older, for whatever reason," Strasburg said, "the windup's just been an issue as far as getting that right feeling of staying on the mound, not drifting too much towards first or third base side on my leg kick and sticking the landing a little better."
He hasn't yet decided whether to ditch his full windup during the regular season, but pitchers like Yu Darvish have had success working only out of the stretch, and Strasburg feels that his mechanics will be more consistent and put less stress on his arm if he sticks to one motion on the mound. He also said he plans to minimize use of the slider he threw 17.1 percent of the time last season, although he won't ditch it entirely. As always, Strasburg's upside is sky high heading into 2017 -- if he can just find a way to stay healthy.