Why strasburg shutdown

The injury has kept Strasburg on the shelf since early June, and given the multiple setbacks he's incurred in addition to the extensive buildup time he'll require as he advances through a throwing program, he's likely multiple weeks away from returning from the injured list.

Fantasy managers in shallower leagues with limited bench or IL spots available could be better off cutting bait with Strasburg at this point rather than waiting on his potential return.

Strasburg experienced discomfort in his neck again following Wednesday's bullpen session and will back off his throwing program, Maria Torres of The Athletic reports.

Strasburg suffered a minor setback in mid-July and backed off mound work briefly, though he was still able to play catch and got back on the mound not long later. A second setback in such a short span of time will likely lead the Nationals to be more cautious this time around, though the team is still determining what to do next.

It's possible this pause winds up being another brief one, but nothing in Strasburg's extensive injury history suggests that optimism is warranted. Strasburg appeared to experience a setback over the weekend when he acknowledged that he wasn't feeling well physically following a recent simulated game, but he's seemingly turned the corner quickly.

The Nationals planned to hold Strasburg back from throwing for a few days, but after he played catch Tuesday without discomfort, he was cleared to get back on the mound. The minor hiccup in the rehab process shouldn't affect Strasburg's timeline for a return from the day injured list, though the Nationals probably won't pinpoint a target date for the right-hander until he's ready to start a rehab assignment.

Strasburg didn't feel right last week and briefly backed off mound work. He's feeling much better now, reportedly, and the fact that he was able to throw long toss one day after Monday's bullpen session certainly seems like an encouraging sign. Strasburg had been briefly shut down from mound work after some discomfort following a simulated game, but the setback evidently wasn't a major one.

Given his lengthy injury history, particularly in the last two years, it's tough to be too confident in his health, but he at least appears to be moving in the right direction again. Strasburg neck didn't feel right after his simulated game last weekend, so he'll back off from mound work for now, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports. Strasburg hasn't been completely shut down, as he's still playing catch from long distance, but the news nevertheless represents another setback in what's been another disrupted season for the veteran righty.

He strained his calf in March, dealt with shoulder inflammation in April and May and then strained his neck in June. He's only been able to make five starts and owns a disappointing 4. Strasburg neck took part in a heavy workout Tuesday. The skipper also indicated the team wouldn't rush Strasburg, however. We had some veteran guys that kept everyone loose. We had a lot of fun on that team. We did some silly things. We made fun of each other. Nobody was safe, I always said, on that team.

Everything's different. What we've done with this team I don't think is comparable to anyone else. More that feel than the actual series.

Every series is different and so many things have changed since then. And the experience that a lot of us have is so much different. It's a fun city to play in And in this game it's very hard to be perfect. It's very hard to control things. And when you go out there and compete, it's just about execution. And you put in all the work in the offseason, in between starts, to go out there and try and be the best version of yourself.

And that's something you can control every time. Intense and quiet, Stras and Mad Max Scherzer are the yin and yang of the Nationals' championship rotation.

And Stras is a little more subtle in his behavior," manager Dave Martinez said before Game 7. They all got together and gave him a big hug. When Max does it and pitches, he wants all those hugs. He is coming off his most durable season, going with a 3. He hasn't had a winning season since and his career is uncertain going into