Strasburg tossed 83 pitches over four-plus innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros, allowing four runs on three hits and five walks while striking out one. Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
While it was encouraging to see Strasburg get stretched out to a point where he seems ready for the regular season, the results in his return to action from a calf injury were downright ugly. The veteran right-hander blamed mechanical issues more than his calf for his difficulty finding the strike zone, but the latter seems likely to have contributed to the former. Strasburg also admitted after the start that his actual injury was a ruptured plantaris tendon -- which isn't necessary for everyday function and often gets used as the replacement for the UCL in Tommy John surgery -- so he should be able to pitch effectively without it in the long run. He'll get one more Grapefruit League start before the regular season begins, and he's lined up to start the second game of the season for the Nats on April 3 against the Mets.