The news that Stephen Strasburg is going on the DL today with a sore elbow should come as a surprise to no one.  What’s equally unsurprising is that the only one who is surprised is his clueless manager, Dusty Baker.

After his third consecutive disastrous start, a span in which Strasburg went 0-3 with a 14.66 ERA, .414 BAA, and a 2.57 WHIP,  Baker was asked if injury was a concern, to which he replied flatly “No,” according to the Washington Post. Now, just five days later, right elbow soreness has put him on the shelf for the foreseeable future.

Granted, Strasburg’s injury history pre-dates Baker’s influence, but the trail of pitchers’ arms destroyed under his management is well-documented. Just hearing the names Mark Prior or Kerry Wood brings haunting memories to every Cubs fan of their overuse and subsequent injury-marred careers at the hands of Not-So-Trusty Dusty.

Add to that list names like Livan Hernandez, Russ Ortiz, Edinson Volquez, Homer Bailey and a pattern of abuse becomes very clear. At this point, I can only imagine he must have a trophy room full of pitchers’ arm ligaments he’s collected on his masochistic safari through the major leagues like Predator collected his victim’s spines.