The Braves introduced that right-hander Spencer Strider has been positioned on the 15-day injured record, retroactive to April 18, with a strained proper hamstring. Fellow righty Michael Petersen has been recalled to take his spot on the roster.
Strider simply got here off the IL lower than per week in the past. He had spent simply over a yr recovering from UCL surgical procedure. He made one begin, tossing 5 innings in opposition to the Blue Jays. He was scheduled to take the ball once more Tuesday in opposition to the Cardinals. Based on David O’Brien of The Athletic and Mark Bowman of MLB.com, he simply suffered the harm whereas taking part in catch inside the previous hour. He then instructed the membership that he wouldn’t be capable of make his begin.
At this level, there’s nothing to point this will probably be a big absence, but it surely’s the newest velocity bump in what has already been a irritating season for Atlanta followers. The 2025 marketing campaign has gotten off to a horrible begin. There was at the least a little bit of momentum just lately, with Strider’s return and the membership sweeping the Twins over the weekend. However these three victories nonetheless go away the membership in final place within the Nationwide League East with an 8-13 file.
Now, Strider goes to overlook at the least a few turns by means of the rotation, which means the membership should shortly pivot by way of their plans. Spencer Schwellenbach is taking the ball tonight. Bryce Elder is scheduled to pitch on Wednesday on common relaxation. Bumping Elder as much as Tuesday to take Strider’s spot would imply pitching on brief relaxation. Chris Sale and Grant Holmes are lined as much as observe Elder.
Reynaldo López can be on the injured record and received’t be again anytime quickly, as he’s going to be shut down till July. Ian Anderson was traded to the Angels simply previous to Opening Day, with José Suarez coming again in return. Suarez himself was designated for project Sunday evening when the membership acquired reliever Scott Blewett.
AJ Smith-Shawver was with the massive league membership earlier this yr, however he simply tossed 5 2/3 innings at Triple-A on Friday, which means he must pitch on brief relaxation to take the ball Tuesday. Hurston Waldrep threw 5 innings on Saturday, which means he shouldn’t be out there. Davis Daniel logged 5 innings Sunday. Dylan Dodd has been pitching in reduction within the minors, however he does have some beginning expertise. Zach Thompson was up with the membership as a protracted reduction man earlier this yr. He pitched in Triple-A Sunday, however solely two innings, so maybe he’ll have some availability for Tuesday.
That will probably be a short-term problem, because the membership is off on Thursday. In the event that they wish to get Smith-Shawver or any of these different pitchers into the combination, they need to be capable of do it by this weekend. Nonetheless, it’s a less-than-ideal growth for the membership at this stage. As talked about, they’ve dug themselves right into a little bit of a gap within the early going. They’ve some work to do as a way to get again into the combination within the coming months. Strider is likely one of the most dominant pitchers within the league at his greatest and was hopefully going to stabilize the rotation within the absence of López. That may nonetheless occur, however will now have to attend for a few weeks, or maybe longer.
