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Nationals' Stephen Strasburg: Will receive Opening Day nod

Manager Dusty Baker confirmed Sunday that Strasburg would receive the Opening Day start April 3 against the Marlins, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.

Analysis:

Strasburg was always viewed as the favorite for the Opening Day nod after Max Scherzer was slow to ramp up his workload in the spring due to a stress fracture in his finger, so Baker's announcement was merely a formality. After inking a seven-year, $175 million extension with the Nationals last May, the Nationals are hoping for Strasburg to take a leap forward in 2017 after he compiled a 3.60 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 183:44 K:BB ratio over 147.2 innings last season.

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