Spencer Strider was marvelous last time out in his second rehab start of the season for Gwinnett Stripers. He was on a hard 75-pitch limit but still made it into the sixth inning without allowing a hit and striking out eight. His fastball was sitting in the 95-97 MPH range, and his secondary stuff was really working for him throughout the night.
It was so impressive, I thought there was an outside chance the Braves had seen enough, and Spencer Strider would rejoin the major-league club this week. However, Atlanta is sticking with their original plan. Strider will start one more game in Gwinnett on Thursday, hoping to throw around 90 pitches. If everything feels right, it will be his final start with the Stripers.
#Braves Spencer Strider's next start is Thursday for Gwinnett, on the road against Norfolk. It will be his third rehab appearance.
Brian Snitker said the goal is to add another 15 or so pitches (upping to 90 total).
— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) April 5, 2025
Yesterday, Spencer Strider was with the Braves in Atlanta as they prepared to take on the Marlins. A game that was unfortunately postponed, but the hard-throwing righty took some time to discuss how things have felt thus far throughout his recovery.
“I like where things are trending,” Strider said, via Mark Bowman of MLB.com. “I still have a ton of things to work on. Not that I expected to, but I don’t feel super sharp yet. How could I? I’m not even a year off surgery. So, I’ve got to have that patience with myself and also just the humility to know that doing the thing isn’t going to make me better at it. I need to deliberately work on stuff. Pitching in Triple-A is a good opportunity to do that.”
Spencer Strider only made two starts last season before going under the knife with an injury to his UCL. Typically, that requires Tommy John surgery, which would have made it highly unlikely for him to pitch at all this season. But in recent years, a new procedure called the InternalBrace procedure has made it possible to come back much faster. Strider started throwing off the mound about ten months later, and if things continue on this track, he’ll make his return to the majors in just about a year.
On what’s next, Strider still feels like he needs to build up the necessary stamina to go deep into games, which will be tested later this week, as he hopes to throw 90+ pitches.
“I’m doing Spring Training without the benefits of Spring Training,” said Strider. “So, I can be re-entered and that kind of stuff. So, to get to six innings is great. That’s a big accomplishment. Still need to build up the pitch count all the way. Physically, how I’m responding so far has been good. There is just no way to stimulate stamina without doing it.”
It’s generally impossible to predict how pitchers will bounce back from serious procedures. Some guys are never the same, while others return even stronger than before. It might be impossible for Spencer Strider to be better than he was, but he has the sort of drive for greatness that should never be doubted. His presence in the clubhouse alone will give the entire team a lot more confidence, as the Braves hope to dig themselves out of this early season hole that they’ve created.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
