Spencer Strider’s spring training debut in 2026 will certainly be an interesting one, as Strider will clearly be looking to achieve a set of goals of his own during this session that may be at odds with current public speculation about his own profile as a pitcher.
As I mentioned in the game thread, all eyes are on starting pitcher Spencer Strider as he makes his spring training debut in this game. Strider went three-and-out in the first inning, but ran into a bit of trouble in the second, giving up his only run of the day on a sacrifice fly from Bryant Mayo. That shot after Adley Rutschman hit the Strider’s 93 mph heater, the speed was high and it was in doubles territory, so that was it.
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Strider also picked up two strikeouts along the way, which was his only blemish on the day besides giving up two hits and one run. Strider spoke to the media while the game was still going on and seemed pleased with how the day went. It’s also interesting that he did hear all the speculation about the radar gun being turned off during his live BP session, and his quip from MLB.com’s Braves beat writer Mark Bowman near the end of this video suggests he might not be too worried about it.
After Strider’s two innings, Martin Perez got the ball and pitched two innings, only having to deal with one base runner in the two innings he pitched. Unfortunately, after Adley Rutschman ended the day with a solo homer, a runner led the way with a round-out triple.
That was as good as it got for the Orioles, though, as the Braves pitching staff shut down Baltimore from that point on. Jose Suarez added two more clean innings to his spring resume as he tries to find a way to work his way into the starting rotation on Opening Day. Javy Guerra continued his preparation for the World Baseball Classic by pitching a scoreless inning as part of a run in which the Braves struck out 11 consecutive Orioles batters. Any day in a spring training game that keeps the other team quiet is a good day.
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Meanwhile, Chadwick Tromp had a productive day swinging the bat and the Netherlands will surely be happy to see him ready for the WBC. He had an RBI single against Orioles starter Kyle Braddish, and then later in the game, Tropp had one of those moments you usually only see during spring training.
It all happened in the eighth inning, when John Gill hit a seven-pitch shot off Chase McDermott to give the Braves the lead. Gil has reportedly drawn some attention during training camp so far this spring, and this is his first real performance in a game, so that’s encouraging. Before he could even truly celebrate Gill’s hit, Carl Conley caught McDermott’s next pitch and hit another home run. Before Conley could have finished his high-five, Tropp took McDermott’s first pitch and hit a home run. Yes, that was back-to-back home runs on three consecutive pitches. Everyone, welcome to spring training.
Kyle Farmer added two hits, Brett Wisely and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. each had a hit, and Alex Lodise had an RBI double in the top of the ninth as the Braves continued to rack up a dozen hits in the period.
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All in all, I have more to like than dislike about this piece. Spencer Strider’s pace was certainly the talk of the day, and while it might be understandable to be concerned about the fact that he’s posting 93 at this point, it’s still February. Most importantly, he seemed more focused on positioning and command than on emptying the tank while trying to light up the radar gun. If he’s still pitching like this toward the end of training camp, it might cause concern, but for now, it’s just something to keep an eye on. Irony once again shows whether this is really worth worrying about.
Beyond that, it was nice to see the Braves be efficient for the most part in another spring training game. If you’re the kind of person who cares about the Grapefruit League pennant race, the Braves are currently 5-2, which isn’t bad. There will definitely be more peaks and valleys as spring approaches, but for now, the Braves look to be making some solid progress toward Opening Day as the calendar turns from February to March.
