Braves' Spencer Strider Has UCL Damage After MRI on Elbow Injury, Set for More Tests

Atlanta Braves ace pitcher Spencer Strider underwent an MRI on Saturday that revealed damage to his ulnar collateral ligament, the team announced.

Strider will undergo further evaluation on his elbow with Dr. Keith Meister in Arlington, Texas, at an unknown date. It's unclear when he'll return to the mound.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today initially reported Strider would undergo an MRI after leaving his Friday start against the Arizona Diamondbacks due to elbow discomfort.

Manager Brian Snitker told reporters that Strider—who only lasted four innings in the 6-5 win, giving five runs on seven hits—was "complaining about his elbow. ... He was uncomfortable with how it was feeling."

Losing Strider would be devastating for an Atlanta team that is among the World Series favorites after winning 100 games in each of the past two seasons but falling short in the playoffs against the Philadelphia Phillies.

The 25-year-old was arguably the best starting pitcher in baseball last season, finishing 20-5 with a 3.86 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 281 strikeouts in 186.2 innings. His wins and strikeouts were tops in the Major Leagues.

Per Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Strider's "37.3 percent strikeout rate as a starting pitcher from 2022-23 (minimum 200 innings) was easily better than the one produced by Shohei Ohtani, who ranked second with a 32.4 percent rate."

He opened the 2024 campaign atop Atlanta's rotation, though in two starts this season, he's given up seven runs, 10 hits and five walks.

Bowman noted that Strider averaged just 95.9 mph on his fastball during Friday's start, down from 96.7 mph against the Phillies in the season opener and 97.2 mph throughout the 2023 season.

The Braves have a solid stable of arms waiting in Triple-A, so they'll have options to fill out Strider's starts if he's forced to miss time. But losing their ace so early in the 2024 season would be nothing sort of devastating for the World Series hopefuls.