July 14, 2009

Courtesy of Golden Spikes

There haven't been many amateur players who enter a season with as much hype surrounding them as Stephen Strasburg did in 2009. Still, the junior right-hander met and even exceeded expectations, launching San Diego State into the national spotlight while fanning hitters at an amazing rate. He topped a strong field to take home the 2009 Golden Spikes Award on Tuesday at the All-Star FanFest in St. Louis.

The first overall pick of the Washington Nationals in June's MLB First-Year Player Draft, the right-handed fireballer was dynamic as a junior at San Diego State. With 195 strikeouts and just 19 walks, he had an incredible strikeout-to-walk ratio of better than 10-to-1. Using a fastball that frequently touched triple digits and a devastating slide, he didn't lose a game until the NCAA Tournament, finishing the season at 13-1.

That amazing junior season came on the heels of a summer in which he was the only non-professional selected to play for Team USA at the Beijing Olympics where he helped the Americans to a bronze medal.

Strasburg beat out a field that included the second overall pick in the 2009 Draft, North Carolina first baseman and outfielder Dustin Ackley, the eigth overall pick, Arizona State right-handed pitcher Mike Leake, and two players whose 2009 improvements were remarkable, fourth-round picks Kent Matthes, outfielder from Alabama, and A.J. Morris, right-handed pitcher from Kansas State.

This year marks the 32nd time the Golden Spikes Award has been given to amateur baseball's best player.