PHILADELPHIA -- Spencer Strider will spend the next few weeks getting a better feel for how patient he can be.
“You’ve got to be honest with yourself in every way,” Strider said. “I’m not trying to get back [immediately]. I think it has to be a present focus on being the best version of myself tomorrow and the next week.”
As Strider distances himself from the elbow surgery he underwent 13 months ago, he is still far from being the version of himself that led MLB in strikeouts from 2022-23. But after pitching into the fifth inning of a 2-0 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday night, the Braves hurler gave himself and others reason to believe he was a better version than he was last week.
Strider allowed just one hit and one run over 4 2/3 innings while also recording seven strikeouts. But he hit Bryce Harper on the right elbow with a 95 mph pitch and issued four walks, including to the final two batters he faced during this 90-pitch outing.
The Braves starter was distraught as he took his hat off and walked toward the first-base line as Harper was on his knees in pain. Fortunately, X-rays were negative and he is day to day.
“I’m certainly not trying to hit him,” Strider said. “In the moment, I assumed he had a guard on. I was just pissed I hit him. I saw him in pain and that was tough. I’m definitely relieved he is OK. He’s one of the best players of this century. So, he needs to be on the field. That’s best for the game and it’s good for us. It’s good to compete against him.”
Even with Strider recording just 10 more strikes than balls, the results were certainly better than his previous start. He allowed the Nationals four runs and six hits over 4 1/3 innings on May 20. He recorded just three strikeouts during that 75-pitch effort. It was his first start in more than a month and just his second in more than a calendar year.
“It takes a while,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “They’ve got to be patient. We’ve got to be patient. But today was better than the last one. Hopefully, the next one is a little better than this one. He gave us a chance to win.”
And, even with Ronald Acuña Jr. playing his fourth game since returning from his year-long recovery from knee surgery, the Braves were shut out for the fourth time this year and first time since April 5. They have lost five of their past six games and now sit 9 1/2 games behind the first-place Phillies in the National League East.
The hope was the Braves would start rolling once Acuña and Strider returned from the injured list. But the impact hasn’t been immediate.
When a pitcher returns from Tommy John surgery, he has often needed time to regain both velocity and command. Strider will experience the same as he recovers from a procedure that repaired his right ulnar collateral ligament with the insertion of a brace.
Strider may get back to where he was in 2023, when his four-seam fastball averaged 97.2 mph and he notched 281 strikeouts. But, he has to go with what he currently has. His April 16 start in Toronto was his first since he underwent the elbow procedure 362 days earlier. Five days later, he strained his right hamstring. Instead of a rehab start, he completed a five-inning rehab game ahead of his return from a second injured list stint last week.
“He’s still pretty nasty, you know,” Phillies outfielder Max Kepler said. “Even though he's not throwing 100 anymore -- he's throwing 95, 96 -- he's still doing his thing."
Strider’s four-seamer averaged 95.0 mph during last week’s start against the Nationals and 95.1 mph against the Phillies on Tuesday. His fastball averaged 94.5 mph in Tuesday’s fifth inning, as opposed to 94.1 mph during the fifth at Nationals Park last week.
“I can’t concern myself with velo too much right now,” Strider said. “It’s going to come and ultimately whether I'm throwing hard or not, I’ve got to execute pitches and get ahead and stick to our gameplan.”