Strasburg is great, hype is sickening

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It was impossible not to be impressed with the poise and command exhibited by Stephen Strasburg in one of the most anticipated debuts in modern sports history.

And yet, I was happy the Nationals Savior gave up that two-run homer to Delwyn Young.

Just a few minutes earlier, Bob Costas was telling his MLB-TV audience that Strasburg might have even more than a Hall-of-Fame career ahead of him. Indeed, Strasburg, he said, might be one of the all-time game-changers for baseball history.

Then, of course, the incessant comparisons to Walter Johnson commenced.

All this approximately 5 innings into Strasburg's big-league debut. Oy. Thank you, Delwyn Young, for interjecting even a few seconds of reality.

Isn't it enough just to say how wonderful Stephen Strasburg is? Do we have to make him an all-time great already?

And so, Strasburg's sizzling introduction to American baseball fans provided examples of both the best and worst of sports today: Tremendous achievement ... and hype run amok.

I mean, I haven't heard an announcer go that batty about a rookie pitcher's performance since Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout game. Before that, it was Mark Fidrych mowing down the Yankees.

We saw what all-time greats Kid K and The Bird turned out to be, right?