Great, you say – another Stephen Strasburg article.

Well with each exceptional outing, Strasburg has many baseball fans wondering when his exact arrival in the majors will be. His recent numbers have incited a rabid, press-driven frenzy to this effect. In four of his last five trips to the mound, he has allowed one or no hits, his last start a terrific six-inning display of hitless ball. As Dave Cameron presciently surmised in 2008, “That’s how you build a legend.” Like eager video gamers awaiting the latest, hottest title, fans have calendars in hand anticipating Strasburg’s inevitable release date.

The purposes of his progression are twofold: to season a developing talent and to delay his arbitration clock. Yesterday fellow top-ten pick Drew Storen made his major league debut, leaving some asking why the relief pitcher was first to be summoned. Storen explains in today’s Washington Post, “We’re in different situations…I’m not a starter. I signed earlier. He’s going to be here soon. We’ll end up in the same spot. That’s the big thing. It’s sad he’s not on my team now. But it wasn’t a race or anything. I can’t compete with him. That’s the truth. I can’t compete with what he has. That’s why we do different things.”

The cultivation of what he has is less a matter of progression than physical protection. Tom Verducci writes, and Nationals GM Mike Rizzo confirms that Washington is erring “on the side of caution” with their talent. In relating the trajectory of comparable prospect Mike Leake to Strasburg’s, through seven starts, Leake has thrown 691 pitches, Strasburg, 469. There is no ambiguity as to why, as the most-prized colt in the minors is being treated by his handlers with the utmost care. Verducci suggests that Jim Riggleman will also keep a wary eye on Strasburg’s major league pitch counts.

His real progression lies in the current beneath the careers of so many other minor league talents, the economy of baseball. About a month ago, I wrote about another small market team’s unwillingness to promote an obvious talent, and impugned its owner’s pennywise inclinations. In reading more of Rizzo’s explanation of how he has handled his shooter, I am totally inclined to stand that logic on its head here:

“That’s why I’m the general manager of the team, because I have developed players in the past, and that’s how I got the job. I feel comfortable with his developmental schedule. I think it’s the right schedule, and I think it’s best for him long-term.”

Fair enough. Storen’s case is different, as there are different consequences from making him a Super-Two. Above all, it’s truly exciting to watch a GM set about to rebuilding a franchise from scratch, and know that its cornerstone is Stephen Strasburg.

So when does he arrive? Rizzo says that he knows exactly when, but hasn’t said anything more. Much has been made of the timing of Strasburg’s starts thus far, suggesting a June 4-6th window for his unveiling. Looking at the Nationals’ home schedule, June 4th really has to be it. A June 5th or 6th debut puts his next start in Cleveland rather than at home, where he is bound to choke the ticket windows. I would imagine that their fans will, with fierce pride and mild chagrin, remind us of parents to some budding chess prodigy, whose abilities far surpass any of their hopes, who shapes his craft according to his wishes. And while he will boost attendance every five days, he may also begin the emergence of the franchise as a whole.

More of that could follow if JUCO catching sensation Bryce Harper, all but consummated as the Nats’ first-overall pick in 2010, winds up as Strasburg’s battery-mate in coming years. For now, when he emerges from the minor leagues, Strasburg will be as he entered them: not yet a legend, but a polished, veritable ace-in-the-flesh.