Braves Encouraged By Spencer Strider's Injury Progress

The Atlanta Braves remain encouraged by Spencer Strider's progress. Manager Walt Weiss said that while the team doesn't have a timetable for him yet, he's in a good spot.

"Everything's positive," Weiss said on Sunday. "I will say with Strider, we felt like we got out in front of it to a degree when we shut him down, and it looks like that's the case for the most part. We've avoided a big one there."

When it comes to oblique injuries, they can be tricky. Ballplayers can easily miss significant time. No one would have been surprised if he were set to miss a couple of months. It's still not an ideal situation. He's one of four pitchers who got hurt in spring training, but he appears to be on a good track

Ahead of Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals, Strider was playing toss in the outfield grass. He was on flat ground, and he wasn't doing any full windups yet, but he's beyond just lobbing the ball in there.

Spencer Strider is out here playing catch today #Braves pic.twitter.com/vABRVIsBq2
— Harrison Smajovits (@HarrisonSmaj) March 29, 2026

A key thing to determine, at least from Weiss' perspective, is to see how much he has been 'deconditioned." That will likely play a role in whether he needs a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett or not.

Strider was originally set to make his last spring start on Monday, but he was scratched in favor of Didier Fuentes once his ailment was discovered. This marks another season where he's had to miss time due to injuries.

In 2024, he was gone after a couple of starts after he sustained a UCL injury that required an internal brace to mend it. He missed the first month of the 2025 season rehabbing, and even after that, he was sidelined with a hamstring injury after one start.

Once he got past those two ailments, he was available without fail during the 2025 season. While healthy, he struggled to find consistency.

In 23 starts, he pitched to a 4.45 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP and 131 strikeouts in 121 1/3 innings pitched. After being reliant on the power that was behind his fastball, he’s tasked with learning to pitch in a new way. During the spring, worked to get his fastball back up to snuff while also working to mix his pitches better.

In time, we'll get to see how that translates to the regular season when the games matter. Even then, it might take a couple games, depending on how much time he needs to fully get loose.

The Braves return to action on Monday, back on home field when they start a three-game series with the Athletics. Bryce Elder will be on the mound for a 7:15 p.m. first pitch.