Mets' NL East Rival Officially Retiring From Baseball

The New York Mets' former divisional rival will retire from Major League Baseball.

One of the best pitchers that the New York Mets have faced in recent years will retire from Major League Baseball.

Sources close to Stephen Strasburg have told Jesse Dougherty and Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post that he will be retiring from baseball this year.

The former number one overall pick in the 2009 MLB Draft has been battling injuries the past three seasons that have kept him on the injured list for an extended period of time.

He last appeared in a major league game June 2022 after coming back from a nerve injury known as thoracic outlet syndrome before going back on the IL for the remainder of that season. Strasburg first started dealing with nerve issues in 2020 which have continued to give him problems.

When healthy, he was one of the most dominant pitchers in the league. He finishes his career with three All-Star selections, a World Series championship and World Series MVP in 2019 when he went 2-0 with a 2.51 ERA.

The Mets are aware of how good the right hander was at his peak. In 21 appearances against New York, Strasburg had a 9-5 record with a 2.87 ERA and 157 strikeouts.

He spent his entire career with the NL East rival Washington Nationals, becoming one of the greatest players in franchise history. If injuries didn't derail his career, there's no telling what statistical profile he would have had.

A news conference has been tentatively scheduled at Nationals Park on Sept. 9 according to The Washington Post.