Getty Image / Todd Kirkland
Braves pitcher Spencer Strider might very well be unhittable this season. It seems hard to believe that he could drastically improve upon his 2023 season where he became the fastest pitcher in MLB history to reach 100 Ks in a season, only needing 61 innings to get there, but a new video showing Strider’s motion suggests he’s stuff has gotten even nastier in the offseason.
The 25-year-old former Clemson Tiger has perfected his curveball and that is very bad news for the NL East. A video shows Spencer Strider throwing a fastball, a curveball, and then the two motions overlayed on top of each other and the motion of his fastball and curveball are quite literally indiscernible from one another.
Rob Friedman aka ‘Pitching Ninja‘ shared the clip on X, formerly Twitter, and the footage from Cool Today Park in North Port, Florida where the Braves play (about 30 minutes south of me here in SW Florida), shows just how nasty Spencer Strider’s curveball has gotten:
Spencer Strider, Fastball and Curveball, Individual Pitches + Overlay.
Why his Curveball is gonna make him that much tougher to hit. pic.twitter.com/7dzvIAsMxS
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 11, 2024
Currently, Spencer Strider is the odds-on favorite to win the NL Cy Young award at every single (legal) sportsbook in the United States. If that’s not a testament to how nasty his curveball is along with his 98 MPH 4-seamer, I don’t know what is. At this point, I’m just thankful my Tampa Bay Rays play in the AL East and won’t have to face this man throughout the season.
The Braves o/u wins has been set at 101.5 this season. Los Bravos finished with 104 wins in 2023 and ran away with the NL East, putting up a 14-game cushion between them and the Phillies. It seems like this year will be more of that with the Braves and Dodgers destined to meet in the NL Championship.