Mike Rizzo on Stephen Strasburg article with Junkies: 'Nobody cared for Stras more than we did'

Stephen Strasburg, one of the most important players in the history of the Washington Nationals and the 2019 World Series MVP, told his side of the story of walking away from the game after years of injuries derailed and ended his career over the last four years.

"The only thing that I would add to the article is, that nobody cared for Stras more than we did," GM Mike Rizzo said during his weekly appearance on Wednesday with 106.7 The Fan's The Sports Junkies, which is presented exclusively by our partners at MainStreet Bank — Cheer Local. Bank Local. Put Our Team in Your Office. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.

"His health and well-being was No. 1 on our agenda from Day 1, from the time we signed him, it was evident in 2012 and throughout his career," the Nationals GM told the Junkies. "He's on the Mount Rushmore of Nationals.

"He was a great player for us, probably our first significant big-name guy that came in. And at the end of the day winning us a World Series, being the MVP and that's how I'll always remember him. And he'll always be a part of my family because of the years that we had together."

After signing a seven-year, $245 million contract extension following the 2019 World Series, Strasburg managed just eight starts over the next three seasons and pitched jut 31.1 innings due to several injuries, including thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS).

While Strasburg was still working on making a return from his various ailments during the spring of 2023, he told The Post that he received a signed letter from Rizzo that said he was "noncompliant with the rehab."

The Nationals declined to answer The Post's specific questions and instead, issued a statement, that read in part: “Stephen Strasburg will always be a beloved member of the Washington Nationals family. His health and well-being have always been at the forefront of our organization’s decision-making. The communications between Stephen and the club over the last year-and-a-half have been with the guidance of and in accordance with Major League Baseball and the Collective Bargaining Agreement.”

When the Junkies asked Rizzo about the letter, the GM said "I don't really know the letter that you're referring to, but I know there was a lot of legal back and forth because again, these are legal matters and in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement that was agreed to and we have to adhere to from the players and from the commissioner's office, so that's exactly what we did.

"And if the letter was too legal and kind of cold and informal, I believe that that was just a case in point of how the CBA demands of you to handle these situations. I think that's how it could be explained, but the specific letter, I don't recall. There were several letters going back and forth."

Part of the issue was the Nationals wanted Strasburg to be around the team – including being at the ballpark and with the club during spring training – even if he was not going to be working toward making a return to the mound. This rubbed Strasburg the wrong way as he did not want to be a distraction to the players in their preparation.

Rizzo told the Junkies on Wednesday that "a lot of this was procedure and protocol" that the Major League Baseball Players Association and MLB "have to go through when these type of decisions happen."

Toward the end of the 2023 season, Strasburg – medically unable to pitch – was set to retire from baseball and reports began to circulate of an impending ceremony on Sept. 9, 2023. But that never came to be and reports said the Nationals cancelled the press conference. There were reports of disagreements between the two sides.

"This may be the most, misinformed, miscommunicated, non-issue of the season," Rizzo told the Junkies in Sept. 2023 . "Stephen is going to be treated with the respect and admiration that he deserves. There's nobody that loves and cares about Stras and has protected Stras more than me. He is going to be respected and protected and admired by all.

"There is a protocol that has to be followed with players that are on the 40-man roster, that are under contract, that are considering retirement – and that's a player's decision not the team's decision – there is a protocol that is written in the CBA that must be followed before any retirement can take place, can be announced, and can obviously have a press conference or so.

At the time , Rizzo said it was unfortunate that there was "some misinformation" reported and that "there's no disagreement" between the two sides.

Strasburg was listed as retired in April.