Braves’ Spencer Strider already overcoming massive problem at spring training

Spencer Strider didn’t quite have as good of a 2025 season as he and the Atlanta Braves would have hoped, as he encountered a few kinks as he made his way back from a lengthy absence brought forth by a UCL injury. While Strider didn’t undergo Tommy John surgery for the second time in his life, he still had his fair share of difficulties on the mound, as he scuffled through his worst season in MLB in 2025, recording a measly fWAR tally of 0.9 across 23 starts (125.1 innings).

Strider’s stuff in 2025 wasn’t as good compared to his first few years in the majors, as his strikeout rate dropped to just 24.3 percent. For comparison, in 2022 and 2023, that number was at 38.3 and 36.8 percent, respectively. His walk rate in 2025 (9.5 percent) was also worse than where it was in 2022 and 2023.

Suffice to say, it’s clear where Strider must improve heading into the 2026 season. But in Spring Training, it seems as though the Braves starter is already making strides in that department.

“The goal is to try to be in the zone. Everything’s coming out of my hand right. Slider was really good, curveball was good. Got a strikeout with the curveball. Laid one in for a strike,” Strider said, per Ken Sugiura of AJC. “Change-ups out of the hand were good. That was really the goal for the day – try to narrow it in, kind of set the bar in the zone.”

Spencer Strider, Braves aim for bounce-back 2026 campaign

The 2026 season got out of hand for the Braves, as they finished fourth in the NL East with a 76-86 record. That snapped a streak of seven postseason berths, and it was concerning for Atlanta that they either couldn’t get healthy or their key players were underperforming, like Strider.

Nonetheless, Strider is only 27 years of age, and the raw talent he possesses has been apparent from day one. And as Strider continues to put his injury woes further in the distant past, perhaps he recaptures his groove as a Cy Young Award-caliber pitcher.

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