Strasburg’s shutdown paved way to extension

8:25 PM ET

WASHINGTON — So all these years later, it sure sounds as if Stephen Strasburg signed a $175 million, seven-year contract with the Washington Nationals precisely because of their decision to end his 2012 season before the playoffs — not despite it.

“As a competitor, it was a very tough pill to swallow,” Strasburg said Tuesday about the much-debated shutdown to protect his surgically repaired right elbow.Stephen Strasburg, left, and Nationals GM Mike Rizzo speak during Tuesday’s news conference to announce Strasburg’s seven-year, $175 million contract extension. AP Photo/Evan Vucci

“But I think, at the end of the day, you have to look at what their intentions are. And I think their intentions are that it’s an investment, and they want me to be here pitching at a high level for a long time. Hopefully with this group of guys, we can have more opportunities to be in that spot again.”

Flanked by agent Scott Boras and Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo at a news conference, Strasburg smiled often. He laughed at his own jokes.

He spoke of being comfortable in Washington — with his team and his family. His 2-year-old daughter sat on mom’s lap in the front row during the proceedings, a white ribbon with a red curly “W” in the tot’s hair.

Over and over again, the topic of what happened four years ago arose Tuesday.

“At that point, my thoughts were that (the shutdown) was unprecedented, actually, in baseball, No. 1. And my second thought was there was no guarantee that they were going to get back (to the postseason) again.

“So it’s sort of a 50-50 tossup on my opinion of which one was right. Was it right for him? Evidently it was,” …

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