Todd Usher
CNHI
WASHINGTON — Brownsburg native Drew Storen continues to enjoy success with the Washington Nationals, and with that comes higher expectations.
Storen’s effectiveness has helped Washington’s bullpen jump from last in the majors with a 5.04 ERA to 11th with an ERA of 3.64. Storen has been an integral part with a 2.73 ERA. He has a 2-2 record and nine holds.
His success has been noticed by the Nationals’ front office and ESPN, both of which have called him the Nats’ closer of the future. Storen’s chance to close may come sooner than anticipated as the Minnesota Twins are rumored to be interested in Washington’s current closer Matt Capps.
With the trade deadline looming rumors surround the team with first baseman Adam Dunn being pursued by the White Sox and other teams and various teams showing interest in Capps.
“It’s surprisingly not been different [in the locker room],” Storen said. “I didn’t know what to expect. It’s an aspect of baseball and team camaraderie I haven’t dealt with before. Guys just kind of go about their business. I’m kind of new to this so it’s all different for me. It’s out of my control, so I just concentrate on what I can do.”
Storen isn’t worried about the inflated expectations from management.
“I got so much pressure I put on myself and so many expectations I have for myself that it’s going to outweigh whatever they think,” he said. “Sometimes I think I put too much pressure on myself. If they do trust me with a bigger role down the road hopefully I can live up to that.”
Storen has been effective this year and hasn’t had to adjust too much to the hot and humid conditions in Washington.
“I am kind of used to it,” he said. “It’s just a matter of keeping your hands dry. You notice your hands are soaked. I’ve never used rosin before now. It’s a little different, but it’s just like playing in Indiana when I played for the Bulls.”
Storen does more than just pitch. One of his close friends on the team is the rookie phenom Stephen Strasburg. Strasburg was scratched from a recent start with inflammation in his throwing shoulder, and Storen is doing his best to make sure Strasburg stays positive.
“It was a gut check for us, and we had to put everything together and have a good game,” Storen said. “It was a shock to us. I will pick my spot to have a chat with him and make sure he’s fine physically and mentally he’s OK.”
Storen also agrees with the decision to keep Strasburg off the NL roster. He said that Strasburg has the talent to play in many future All Star games.
“It was kind of an interesting debate,” he said. “There’s a certain process. He just got here this year a didn’t have as many starts, and for him to take a spot from someone that’s been out there taking 15 or 20 starts and putting in a full year’s work — not to take away from what he’s done — it’s tough. That’s what he thought and he didn’t want to take away someone’s spot.”
As his rookie season continues Storen continues to work on his craft to make sure he continues to succeed.
“You still need to go out every time and make adjustments and see what’s working for you,” he said. “When hitters see you for the second and third time you have to make those adjustments. It’s been big for me that I’ve been able to do that. Each time I go out there looking for an edge, but at the same time I try not to over think it.”
He also had the experience of pitching in the ballpark he visited so many times as a youngster in Cincinnati.
“It was cool,” he said. “It was my home field. To get that experience of going somewhere and having family and friends come out and see that was pretty cool. It kind of helped put things in perspective for me. Things like hearing the PA guy say my name was cool because I have heard that guy for years.”
And one benefit of being a professional athlete is being able to play yourself in a video game. Storen recently purchased MLB: The Show 2010 for the PlayStation 3. He has yet to play himself, but has heard from his friends that they are impressed by his virtual player.
“Growing up I always made myself the best player in the game as a create-a-player,” Storen said. “Now that I’m a real player I’m going to have to try it. A lot of my buddies have texted me saying they’ve played as me and how hard I throw in the video game. If I threw as hard in real life as I did in the video game it would be a lot of fun.”
