Hug Stephen Strasburg More. Continue Hugging Him.

Stephen Strasburg continued his great postseason run last night by throwing six solid innings in Game 2 of the World Series, during which he allowed just two earned runs and struck out seven. You know what that means, don’t you? He got a big hug for his troubles.

Strasburg receiving long, loving hugs from Anibal Sanchez and Gerardo Parra at the conclusion of his starts is something that has been going on since the end of the regular season. Given how great Strasburg has been over that stretch, it seems pretty obvious that he is currently deriving his powers as a pitcher from the warm embrace of his buds. And yet, despite this obvious fact, Strasburg goes on pretending that he does not enjoy the hugs:

Bah! Look at this smile, and tell me this is not a man who is enjoying himself:

If Strasburg needs to go on acting like he’s too cool of a guy to appreciate the empowering effects of being publicly loved by his bros, that’s fine. But Parra and Sanchez must not let this charade prevent them from wrapping their big friend up in their arms and giving him exactly what he needs to succeed.