From one phenom to another: Nice job.
Dwight Gooden told ESPN Radio he was “very impressed” by the debut of Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg this week.
“I was very impressed, especially in the day and age when it’s all about hitters with the small ball parks and all of that. To see a pitcher come in and dominate like that it was a lot of fun,” Gooden told host Scott Van Pelt on Wednesday. “I wish I could have been there, but I saw the highlights. I was truly amazed and he should have a lot of success in the major leagues.”
Gooden, who was 19 when he broke into the majors with the Mets in 1984, is one of the few people on Earth who know what Strasburg’s life is like.
Strasburg struck out 14 Pirates in his seven-inning premiere Tuesday, allowing two runs and four hits in a 5-2 Nationals win.
Gooden’s debut was April 7, 1984 at Houston. He struck out five in five innings, allowing one run on three hits in a 3-2 Mets win.
“The year before I struck out 300 guys in A-ball, so I imagine it would have been about the same,” Gooden said of the expectations facing him.
Gooden went 17-9 in 1984 with 276 strikeouts in 218 innings. He followed that with a 24-4 record and 1.53 ERA in 1985. He had 119 wins before he turned 26.
“I remember the first game I pitched against the Astros and I called my dad and said, ‘This is fun I should get a lot of wins,'” Gooden said. “Then my second start was at Wrigley Field and I didn’t make it out of the third inning (seven hits, six runs).
“I remember I told my dad I wasn’t sure if I was ready. It wasn’t till after the All-Star break that I realized I could make it.”
His advice to Strasburg: “Keep working hard, do what it takes, what you got there. Enjoy every moment and don’t let anything.”
Gooden’s career was derailed by drug-related suspensions but he returned to the game long enough to pitch a no-hitter for the Yankees in 1996.
Asked what he would do to return to his glory year of 1985, Gooden said, “I would probably give anything but my kids. That was a special moment. The whole year on the mound knowing if you made your pitches the hitters couldn’t touch you that night. That’s the kind of stuff I had.”