The 35-year-old hurler had been involved in a nasty dispute with the Nationals who wouldn’t let him receive the balance on his contract if he retired, as they hoped to recover a portion of the $105 million that Strasburg is owed over the next three seasons. Thankfully, that saga appears to have reached its end and Strasburg was able to officially hang up his cleats. The top overall selection from the 2009 draft finishes his career with a 113-62 record, 3.24 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and a 1723/394 K/BB ratio over 1470 innings in 13 seasons with the Nationals. He was a three-time All-Star and was the World Series MVP for the Nationals in 2019. Kudos to an impressive career.

The plan in place that would allow Strasburg to retire last fall apparently fell apart in the end because some in ownership vetoed it, presumably in the hopes of recovering at least a small part of the $105 million that Strasburg is owed over the next three years. Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, who certainly appears to be on Strasburg’s side, said there was a request for assistance from MLB and the MLBPA on the matter, but that they chose to stay out of it. One wonders if the Nationals will go through the motions of having Strasburg report to spring training to collect his money, something they didn’t do last season. Strasburg’s pitching career is over, either way, but he still has obligations to the team, should the Nationals wish to enforce them.

Strasburg was expected to retire in September, but since the Nationals reportedly changed the terms of their settlement, he remains an active player, if one who is very unlikely to play in a major league game again. But, unless something changes, he’ll be with the Nationals in spring training, and he’ll return to the 60-day IL when eligible in March.

There were plans to honor Strasburg this weekend with a retirement ceremony in Washington, but they’ve been put on hold, at least temporarily, while the two sides continue to negotiate the financial terms of his injury-related retirement. The central issue appears related to deferred-money in the seven-year, $245 million contract between the two sides signed back in 2019. The 35-year-old right-hander has elected to hang up his cleats due to severe nerve damage that has prevented him from returning to pitching.