Nov. 20, 2014
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - Former Aztec pitcher Stephen Strasburg will be inducted into the Aztec Hall of Fame as a member of the 2014 class this weekend. Strasburg, along with four other inductees, will be recognized during halftime of SDSU's home football game against Air Force on Friday, Nov. 21, beginning at 6:30 p.m. PT at Qualcomm Stadium.
Strasburg, consensus first-team All-America selection in both 2008 and 2009, is among San Diego State's most celebrated former student athletes. He was named National Pitcher of the Year in 2009 by College Baseball Foundation (CBF) and was selected Mountain West Pitcher of the Year in two consecutive seasons. As a junior that season he also captured both the Golden Spikes Award presented by USA Baseball and the Dick Howser Trophy (the equivalent of football's Heisman Trophy) as the nation's outstanding collegiate baseball player
During his three-years as an Aztec, he set school records for most strikeouts in a game (23), in a season (195) and in a career (375). Strasburg also holds the school record for lowest career ERA of 1.59, and tied the program's record for most wins in a season with 13 as a junior in 2009.
During his junior season, Strasburg was selected to the CBF National Team of the Week four times before capping it off with a no-hitter in his final collegiate home appearance. That season, he walked only 11 batters while striking out 195 in 109 innings pitched before leading the Aztecs to their first NCAA Regional appearance in 18 years.
As a sophomore in 2008, Strasburg was named Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week three times and was the only collegiate player on the bronze medal-winning U.S. Olympic team. Following his career on The Mesa, Strasburg was the first pick of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft of the Washington Nationals.
The Aztec Hall of Fame inducted its first members in 1988, and welcomed a new group of legends every year through 1999. Inductions were put on hold for two years while work was completed on the Aztec Athletics Center (now Fowler Athletics Center), which is the first permanent home of the Hall of Fame, and resumed in 2002. Not including this year's class, 128 individuals have been inducted since its inception.
The four other members of the 2014 class for the Aztec Hall of Fame include football linebacker Kirk Morrison, football offensive lineman Pete Inge, men's soccer standout Kyle Whittemore and former track-and-field star athlete Shayla Balentine.
For more information about the Aztec Hall of Fame induction ceremony, contact the Aztec Club at (619) 594-6444.