Braves’ Spencer Strider expects to make return at Blue Jays

Atlanta Braves right-hander Spencer Strider is expected to make his first start in more than a year Wednesday afternoon against the host Toronto Blue Jays.

The teams have split the first two contests of the three-game series after the Blue Jays defeated the Braves 6-3 on Tuesday night.

It will be Strider’s first major league appearance since April 5, 2024. He missed the rest of the season when he had surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in the right elbow using an internal brace.

He struck out 13 in 5 1/3 innings during a rehabilitation outing with Triple-A Gwinnett on April 10. He allowed one run and three hits, throwing 90 pitches (62 strikes).

“He felt really good,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said.

Strider had a side session on Sunday to prepare for his season debut.

He was 20-5 with a 3.86 ERA with 281 strikeouts over 186 2/3 innings over 32 starts in 2023. He is 0-1 with a 1.35 ERA in one career start against Toronto, when he struck out 12 and allowed two runs (one earned) in 6 2/3 innings on May 12, 2023.

The series rubber match could be a good pitching contest with right-hander Chris Bassitt (1-0, 0.98 ERA) scheduled to start for Toronto. He is 2-2 with a 2.92 ERA in four career starts against Atlanta.

The Braves had three more home runs on Tuesday, one by Austin Riley, who has three on the series. The Braves have hit six homers in the two games.

The difference on Tuesday is the Blue Jays had runners on base when they hit their two home runs, both in the five-run fifth against Spencer Schwellenbach.

Alan Roden, who doubled and scored in the third, hit a two-run blast in the fifth for his first career major league home run.

“Hopefully today can kick-start him, but when you look up, he’s been productive, you know,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said.

Anthony Santander completed the fifth-inning onslaught with a three-run homer on a cutter that did not cut. It was the Blue Jays’ first three-run homer of the season and their 11th overall. High-priced Vladimir Guerrero Jr. still has not homered in 18 games after going 0-for-2 with two walks and an RBI.

“We know that power is going to come at some point, right,” said Santander, who has his first two homers of the season over the past three games. “Personally, I’ve been feeling good the last four games, hitting the ball a little harder, and hopefully I can continue that rhythm.”

The support was enough for Toronto right-hander Kevin Gausman, who allowed two runs on two solo home runs over six innings.

Toronto recalled Addison Barger from Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday and put Nathan Lukes on the paternity list. Barger played right field and was 0-for-4.

The loss was disappointing for the struggling Braves, who hoped their 8-4 victory in the series opener could be the start of a resurgence.

They felt good with Schwellenbach and his 0.45 ERA starting in the second game. But 4 2/3 innings and six runs later his ERA was 2.55 and Atlanta had another loss.

“I thought his stuff was really good,” Snitker said “But he just missed location, and when you do that to these hitters, you’re going to pay for it, and it’s just one of those things that happens. It happens to the best of them.”

–Field Level Media