#42 Spencer Strider: "I have a lot of opinions"

What the Braves star did last summer. Plus: A fan who needs to leave his glove at home.

The Opener

1. ESPN is reportedly back in negotiations with MLB for a piece of the league’s future broadcast rights package.

2. A Diamondbacks fan has been banned from Chase Field for the rest of the season after interfering with a fly ball at the wall on Monday night, sowing confusion that could have affected the outcome of Arizona’s game against the Giants. In barring the fan, the D-backs noted “multiple offenses,” and uh, yeah, the fan has done this once a year for several years running! That fan went on a radio show and said, “I apologize to the D-backs. I apologize to the D-backs fans. I would never interfere.” Lying is everyone’s favorite strategy apparently.

3. Yordan Alvarez had a setback attempting to return from his interminable hand injury, Jeremy Peña hit the IL with a fractured rib, and the Astros are sailing along in first place. If it helps, even their stalwart beat reporter Chandler Rome has no idea how this is happening.

---

You know how sometimes Tuesday feels like it should be Friday? Like it’s already been a week. Yeah, of course you do.

Hey, it’s Zach. I know it’s Wednesday now, but I’m writing this on Tuesday, which is going to become our Friday. Writing about baseball and having a reason to pay attention to all 30 teams, to at least temporarily care about hundreds and hundreds of different little things, is generally a joy. But sometimes you also look up one day and, well, here’s an exchange Hannah and I just had.

You look up and you’re watching the Marlins on purpose on vacation.

We’re going to use the July 4 holiday as a handy cue to take a quick breather. So, no newsletter Friday. We’re both going on vacation, and we’ll be back and reenergized Monday. Hopefully everyone has an excellent long weekend.

First, though, Hannah has a very fun interview with Braves pitcher Spencer Strider. Enjoy.

---

photo by Gordon Donovan (I wish I was not doing the flamingo thing but what can you do?)

If you caught a Braves game at a sports bar in Atlanta last year, you might have been sitting near Spencer Strider

by Hannah Keyser

Spencer Strider is a thoroughly modern Major League Baseball pitcher — he throws nasty stuff and is coming off his second major elbow injury.

The Braves ace led baseball in strikeouts in 2023, but missed nearly all of 2024 after having an InternalBrace surgery — an alternative to Tommy John that has a shorter recovery timeline — just about five years after he had TJ as a college student. Now, he’s healthy and, as a veteran of a rehab process that many pitchers will confront, I wanted to get his perspective on how to make the most of it.

I talked to Strider on the last day of the Braves’ four-game series at Citi Field last week. Because we’re going to put a paywall between here and there, I’ll just spoil it and tell you that I thought the most interesting stuff was the insights Strider took away from watching Braves games like a fan last year.

HK: Your arm slot is slightly lower this year, is that on purpose?

SS: No. And I don't pay much attention to it. There's so many things that are expected and also totally unpredictable when you're rebuilding, just even season to season when you're healthy, I think. So, no I don't think much of it. And it really hasn't — I don’t think that that’s impacted anything directly. That’s such a down-the-chain-of-mechanics type of thing. Everything that I’m concerned with is way upstream.

More generally, what is it like going through rehab a second time? I know it wasn’t exactly the same procedure, but from a mental perspective, when you get hurt and you know it’s going to be a long rehab, is it helpful to have done it before or is it scary to know how much is still ahead?

I think a little bit of both, but probably more so it's helpful. Like, watching Ronald [Acuña Jr.], we’re kind of going on the same schedule, I'm sure he felt — and I could see it — that he felt the same way. There's almost like a confidence that this is a good thing, if I choose to make it that way. And just the knowledge of how temporary it is. It's not the rest of your career. So I think just take it as an opportunity to be better, and know that, in a number of ways, because of that experience, you'll be grateful at the end of it.

What is the hardest part of rehab?

Patience is probably the simplest answer. I think it really is emotionally difficult, just the different stages of it, when you really feel like you're not making progress. Those first few weeks, a month after, all of a sudden you're disconnected from the team. All of a sudden that goal is not your goal, and you can't really participate. And there's that, like, what did I do all this work for? These are all irrational, emotional thoughts that you kind of have to work through and kind of be logical and get your mind back in the right place. And then just seeing your teammates struggle, and for us last year, it was a frustrating season. I know those guys could tell you more, obviously, they were the ones doing it.

How much were you around the team?

I was in Atlanta every day, so I was at every home game. I wasn't allowed in the dugout for a while. But once I was, I was out there. Did my rehab in Atlanta. I tried to try to be as involved as I could be, but also obviously I’ve been on the other side and I know how into your own stuff and into that 26-man group [you can be]. All of a sudden, someone else is here and I know it can be like what are you doing here?

But it’s you!

No, and I get that. But at the same time, I think it's important that those are the guys that are going out there, and ultimately the responsibility for winning or losing, it's on their shoulders. They deserve the credit, and they're the ones that are going to have to wear the blame. And I think just however you can be supportive and also provide the space for those guys is important.

Did you pick up any new hobbies? I know sometimes guys have more time when they’re rehabbing.

It was busier than I remember. I probably should have done more [rehabbing] when I was in college, but there’s only so much bandwidth. It was kind of nice to just have free time, honestly. Like a normal 9-5 schedule. When the team was on the road, I would go in at 9 [a.m.] and be back in the afternoon and make dinner or go out to eat. Watch the game with friends and stuff.

Wait, did you watch the games?

I did watch games.

With people?

Yeah.

What is that experience like?

They don't like it, watching games with me. I'm not a good spectator. Of any sport, whether it's Braves or anything. Teams that I'm rooting for, I'm not a fun person to watch with.

Because you're so intense?