‘The Sky’s the Limit’
Flamethrowing Aztec pitcher turned MLB star Stephen Strasburg sees championship potential in SDSU baseball—and he’s committed to helping make that longtime dream a reality.
By Michael Klitzing
LOUNGING INSIDE a Tony Gwynn Stadium suite, Stephen Strasburg has a panoramic view of his old collegiate stomping grounds. Stretched out before him on this too-humid September afternoon is the place where his journey from shy fi rst-year pitcher to MLB All-Star began.
Everywhere Strasburg looks, the memories from his stellar career at SDSU—where he set the college baseball world ablaze from 2007 to 2009—flood back quicker than one of his 102-mph fastballs.
There’s the bullpen where he honed his craft and shared countless laughs with his teammates. The mound where he once struck out 23 Utah Utes in a single game while recovering from a bout of food poisoning. The third-base line where he led a packed stadium in a rousing rendition of the SDSU “Fight Song” after pitching a no-hitter in his final home start.
But as he gazes out onto the green expanse, he sees something else: limitless potential.
“I’m a firm believer that San Diego State can win a national championship someday,” Strasburg says. “All the ingredients are here in the backyard.”
Strasburg knows what it takes. An ace pitcher with MLB’s Washington Nationals for more than a decade, he earned three All-Star selections and reached the sport’s mountaintop when he was named MVP of the 2019 World Series. He has the ring to prove it.
Now retired from playing and back in San Diego, Strasburg has returned to the fold in a big way. Over the summer, he and his wife, Rachel Lackey (’12), made a pivotal gift to support Aztec baseball. Their contribution will go toward enhancing this jewel at the corner of 55th Street and Remington Road. Additional needs for future upgrades include the locker room and playing surface.
“I truly believe that Tony Gwynn Stadium can be like a high end Double-A ballpark,” Strasburg says. “There’s so much potential in having an on-campus venue for baseball that can really attract the student body. I think that starts with getting this place to be the best facility in Southern California.”
Why now? For one, it’s a transformative moment for the Aztecs as they prepare to enter a Pac-12 Conference that, by spring 2027, will boast baseball powers Oregon State University and Dallas Baptist University.
For another, Strasburg says he’s a believer in new head baseball coach Kevin Vance, a fellow San Diegan who fondly recalls being in the stands for some of Strasburg’s SDSU starts.
“Stephen is one of the best college players in the history of the game, and his contributions are much larger than his financial support—his presence around our players is priceless,” says Vance, who came to SDSU this year from the University of Arizona. “I’m so grateful that we both made our way back home at the same time and are now teammates in building the program we both care so much about.”
The feeling is mutual for Strasburg.
“We’re kind of cut from the same cloth in terms of being San Diego kids who fell in love with baseball,” he says. “We got our style of play from those Padres teams and from Tony Gwynn.”
Carrying on the legacy of Gwynn—the Hall of Famer and Aztec legend whose name adorns this diamond—is of utmost importance to Strasburg. Graduating from West Hills High School in nearby Santee, Strasburg grew up idolizing the Padres right fielder. Years later, it was during Gwynn’s SDSU coaching tenure that Strasburg went from being a kid lacking confidence and conditioning, relegated to the ballpark’s smallest locker, to a hard-throwing phenom who became the first overall pick of the 2009 MLB draft.
It’s a connection Strasburg still treasures. Scrolling through his camera roll, Strasburg pulls up a photo from his third birthday party where he’s smiling big next to a Tony Gwynn poster. His mother gifted Gwynn a print of the photo after he was drafted; the photo stayed on Gwynn’s office desk until his passing in 2014.
“Tony chose to come back to San Diego State because he’s an alum and he wanted to coach and make an impact,” Strasburg says. “I think now, as I look back on my baseball career, it’s really important to me to honor Tony and his legacy in the form of Tony Gwynn Stadium.”
Strasburg has an impressive Aztec legacy of his own, not to mention deep SDSU roots. His parents and aunt are alumni, and he met his wife while both were students. The father of three daughters also mentions with pride that 128 former players showed up to a recent alumni golf tournament.
With support from Strasburg and the Aztec community, one can dream of a bigger alumni gathering sometime soon—when the Aztecs finally reach the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
“Our goal when I was here was to go to Omaha,” he says. “I still want this team to go to Omaha. I’m here to do anything I can to help build this momentum—because I really think the sky’s the limit.”