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Stephen Strasburg goes six strong in third outing

Strasburg throws a pitch against the Florida Marlins during the first inning of their MLB National League baseball game in Washington

Washington Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg throws a pitch against the Florida Marlins during the first inning of their MLB National League baseball game in Washington, September 17, 2011. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

REUTERS

Nationals righty Stephen Strasburg made his third start since returning from Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery on Saturday night against the Marlins.

And he was as dominant as you might expect.

Via Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com, Strasburg tossed six innings of one-run ball, allowing just four hits while striking out three Marlins hitters. The right-hander did not issue a walk and threw 45 of his 61 pitches for strikes, hitting 98 mph regularly.

Strasburg has now pitched 14 major league innings since being activated from the 60-day disabled list on September 6 and boasts a sparkling 1.29 ERA and 0.64 WHIP over his first three starts. He has scattered eight hits, fanned 11 opposing hitters and allowed only two runs -- all while managing to not walk a single batter. In fact, Strasburg hasn’t issued a walk to the last 96 batters he’s faced, dating back to 2010.

The velocity is where it needs to be, and his breaking stuff has quickly rounded into midseason form. Strasburg should remain a dominant force over his final two appearances of the 2011 regular season.