Official Washington types turn out on a hot day for Strasburg

Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, June 23, 2010, in Washington. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

What would entice otherwise busy people to Nationals Park to see the blah Kansas City Royals on one of the hottest days of the year? Stephen Strasburg, duh.

The rookie pitching phenom brought out yet another crowd of official-Washington types Wednesday afternoon. Such as Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.! Hey, judge, can you overturn that last umpire call? "Nothing I can do," he told our spy.

Yeah, pundit Mark Shields was playing hooky, he admitted. "But there are priorities in life. I haven't seen Strasburg. It's kind of like Lourdes." (Sure, if the religious pilgrimage had beer and hot dogs.) Dem pollster Peter Hart explained that this really wasn't taking off from work, seeing as how he was headed to Atlanta, and "this just happens to be between the office and airport." NBC's David Gregory rushed in before the first pitch and told us he had no problem multitasking on a big breaking-news day. "I've been on the air a couple times today, and able to still come out."

Worth it? Strasburg pitched six innings with nine strikeouts, but he gave up nine hits. The Nats lost, 1-0.

See earlier:

"D.C. chefs pitch Strasburg-themed burgers as pscyhoanalytic group studies the man",

"Nationals' new star Stephen Strasburg and his low-key life as newlywed with wife Rachel"