Stephen James Strasburg (pron-en?st??sb??g) (born July 20, 1988) is a right-handed pitcher for the Washington Nationals, who selected him with the first pick in the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft. He signed a record $15.1 million contract with the Nationals on August 17, 2009, just 77 seconds before the deadline, breaking a record previously held by Mark Prior, who had signed for $10.5 million in 2001. He was called the "most-hyped pick in draft history" by ESPN and the "most hyped and closely watched pitching prospect in the history of baseball" by Sports Illustrated.