It’s rare to see an MLB player dominate both on the rubber and in the batter’s box in the course of one game, but Nationals star Stephen Strasburg was up to the task on Thursday night in Atlanta.
Strasburg pitched 5.1 innings of 3-run, 7-strikeout ball against the NL East-leading Braves in a 13-4 Nationals win, but that wasn’t even where he was at his best.
The 30-year-old veteran also smacked a three-run home run that traveled 420 feet off of Braves reliever Touki Toussaint to give his team an 8-1 lead. Not only was it a rare home run by a pitcher, but the ball was a monster blast that traveled 420 feet and into the seats.
It wasn’t Strasburg’s only hit of the night, however, as he also recorded two more singles and two more RBI to finish the night with three hits and five RBIs.
The former first overall pick’s Thursday performance was, without a doubt, one of this MLB season’s best individual performances in a single game.
Strasburg moved to 12-4 with a 3.52 ERA on the season with his victory, bringing his Nationals to within 5.5 games of the NL East-leading Braves.
