Nationals Pitcher Steven Strasburg had a particularly short outing last night, only going 1 1/3 innings. His removal from the game was a result of his inability to hit spots. If a pitcher doesn’t hit spots, he won’t be successful. Let’s see how bad Stras really was.

His first real miscue of the game came after the leadoff home run.

Watch Ramos’ glove. See how Raoms sets up low and inside near the front knee. That right there is where he wants the pitch. But Strasburg muffs it like a hooligan and misses his spot by about a foot and a half. This is only the first example of Strasburg having trouble with his spots. After escaping the first inning, Strasburg loses his control again in the second. Watch how far away from the target this next pitch is.

After the game, when asked about this pitch Andrelton Simmons said: “Man. Strasburg really needs to watch himself. He almost hit my wang.” Simmons is right. Two more inches inside and Stras would have nailed Simmons right in his rig.

If Strasburg wants to have any semblance of success in the big leagues he better learn how to hit his targets.