It’s looking like the Atlanta Braves have already gotten the worst-case scenario news on ace pitcher Spencer Strider: That he’ll be out for the rest of the season after apparently undergoing Tommy John Surgery.
In last Friday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Spencer Strider revealed that he was dealing with discomfort in his elbow. It was later announced that UCL damage was found in his right elbow.
Per Braves beat writer Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Strider saw Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas, Texas on Monday. The team isn’t giving much details on what happened, but Bowman noted that they could “wait a few more days to” announce that Strider underwent Tommy John Surgery.
Atlanta manager Brian Snitker had informed reporters that Dr. Meister didn’t rule out Tommy John Surgery for Strider, per Bowman.
Sadly, a plethora of star MLB pitchers have already endured serious injures that will have sidelined them long-term. The Cleveland Guardians also lost their ace pitcher, Shane Bieber, for the season as he requires Tommy John surgery as well.
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The Houston Astros are also waiting for Justin Verlander to receive clearance to return as he continues to fight through a right shoulder injury. The New York Yankees placed ace pitcher Gerrit Cole on the 60-day IL to begin the season because of elbow inflammation.
On top of that, Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will not pitch this year as he continues to recover from elbow surgery.
Losing Spencer Strider Is A Tough Blow For Atlanta
Along with the Dodgers, the Braves entered 2024 as one of the two premier favorites to win the 2024 World Series. But without their top pitcher, Atlanta’s job of winning another championship just got that much tougher.
Strider broke out last season with 20 wins, a 3.86 ERA and 281 strikeouts in just 186.2 innings pitched. He was a top NL Cy Young candidate heading into 2024, but Strider will unfortunately have to wait a long year (potentially longer) to build off his 2023 career year.
It’s an absolute brutal blow for Atlanta, and an extremely unfortunate break for one of the game’s most popular young superstars.
