Over his last 7.2 innings pitched, Spencer Strider has allowed just five runners to reach base without allowing a run. He also has 13 strikeouts. A fourth-round pick out of Clemson in 2020, Strider rocketed through the system and quickly proved he belongs in the majors for good. I think the Braves are crazy for not permanently making him the team’s fifth starter, but there’s also a reason I’m sitting on my floor as the sun rises in my run-down apartment and not in the front office.
Eventually, I don’t think Brian Snitker will have a choice. If Strider keeps pitching like this, they’ll have to keep him in the rotation, but this article isn’t about his arm. This is about the busty lower half of his body.
Strider has an absolute wagon. It was easily the first thing I noticed when he trotted out to the mound at Truist Park for the first time, and from experience, I know you don’t get that wagon without hard work. A lot of hours go into having the Taj Mahal of butts, and Spencer Strider talked about that with Paul Byrd the other day before the game with the Red Sox.
"That's actually a little bit of an understatement. I've got over 500 on split squat."@Braves rookie Spencer Strider talks to @PaulByrd36 about his quick rise to the major leagues, his strength training routine and modeling his slider after Jacob deGrom's. pic.twitter.com/JfES273sMK
— Bally Sports: Braves (@BravesOnBally) May 11, 2022
I like to consider myself a bit of a workout junkie. I also haven’t seen someone do a split squat in the gym since I was in high school. AND THIS MAN IS SPLIT SQUATTING OVER 500 POUNDS.
Leg day tests your grit. You can tell the kind of man someone is after watching them torch their legs into oblivion without blinking. It’s all in your head, and in many ways, so is pitching. Eventually, Strider will hit a bump in the road — like every young pitcher — and this may not be world-class pitching analysis, but this interview gives me confidence he will have the mental fortitude to push through whatever is thrown his way when the time comes.
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Photo: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire
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