Is Stephen Strasburg Better Than Mark Prior?

There has been a ton of hype surrounding this year's most likely top pick in the MLB draft: Stephen Strasburg. This guy's getting more hype than Mark Prior. With Prior, nobody was sure if he was even going to go first in the draft or not (he was the second pick because the Twins didn't want to spend too much money...they got Joe Mauer instead).

No such debate with this kid—the Nationals say they're going to pay whatever it takes to get him. That's how good they think he's going to be.

Anyway, let's take a look at both these kids' final seasons in college to see how they stack up against each other:



Right off the bat, a few things jump off the page: Prior and Strasburg absolutely dominated their leagues. Prior has less walks but Strasburg has more Ks and allows fewer hits. When it comes to the all-important WHIP (walks + hits / IP), Strasburg has the edge.

Let's take a look at what they did the season before the hype began:



Prior had an OK year while Strasburg flat-out dominated. I don't know that this "proves" anything about Strasburg being better than Prior, but it does show that he's been really really good for more than just one college season.

And let's not forget that Prior hasn't pitched in years...he may never pitch again for all we know. So you never know when it comes to this stuff.

So all the hype and money he's going to get is only going to prove itself as time goes on. For the sake of the Nationals and their fans, I sure hope they get their money's worth.

Your move, Boras.

Image from More Hardball