The Braves fell to the Red Sox, but the story was Strider looking electric and healthy.
Spencer Strider made his long awaited spring debut with the Atlanta Braves on Monday afternoon and was superb against the Red Sox, striking out six batters over 2.2 innings.
Strider did not give up a hit and seldom missed out of the strike zone. Boston mostly had backups and prospects in the lineup today — although Vaughn Grissom, Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer did all start — and they had no chance against Strider, whose fastball sat in the upper 90s and had full command of his slider and curveball.
Here are five of his six glorious strikeouts:
Spencer Strider is BACK
FIVE straight strikeouts in his first #SpringTraining start of the year! pic.twitter.com/kpPtbeKoQv
— MLB (@MLB) March 17, 2025
We will wait to see how Strider feels when he and his surgically-repaired elbow ramp things up again in the coming days, but by all accounts, this was a momentous day for one of the most talented arms in the league. Look for Strider to make one more start this spring before making a handful of rehab appearances in the minor leagues. A mid-April return to the Majors feels possible at this point, barring a setback.
Ian Anderson pitched after Strider and it was more of the same; no command, very little swing-and-miss, and far too many baserunners. Anderson gave up five walks — five! — and two hits over five innings, allowing Boston’s backups to plate two runners. Anderson has now issued 17 walks with just seven strikeouts this spring. Yeesh.
The Braves continued to struggle a bit offensively, which has been a theme for the spring. Luke Williams had the lone extra base hit of the day with a double.
The Braves are off on Tuesday before resuming the spring slate on Wednesday @ the Yankees. First pitch at 6:35 p.m. ET.