Braves reporter sounds alarm on worst-case scenario for Spencer Strider's elbow injury

The Atlanta Braves are coming off their worst road trip of the season, winning just one game. However, the biggest setbacks of the trip were the injuries suffered by Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider.

Strider's injury appears to be the more serious of the two, as he is dealing with an elbow issue. For now, he has been placed on the 15-day injured list.

“The Braves announced that right-hander Spencer Strider has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to inflammation in his throwing elbow. Right-hander Anthony Molina was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding 26-man roster move. The placement comes a day after Strider was removed during the fourth inning of Friday’s 7-5 loss to the Mets,” MLB Trade Rumors’ Mark Polishuk wrote.

There was no update on Saturday regarding what the future held for Strider. However, on Sunday, Braves manager Walt Weiss revealed that Strider would be evaluated by a specialist.

“Braves manager Walt Weiss says today there is “nothing definitive yet” on Spencer Strider; Strider will next go be evaluated by Dr. Keith Meister this week,” AJC’s Chad Bishop posted.

It is rarely a positive sign when a pitcher with elbow issues is scheduled to see another doctor. Strider has battled arm injuries over the past few seasons, and it appears another issue has surfaced. The physician evaluating him has performed numerous elbow surgeries on major league pitchers.

“If you go to Dr. Keith Meister's website, he has a carousel of news articles highlighting all the elbow surgeries he's done on prominent big leaguers. So yeah, it's probably not good,” Battery Power’s Scott Coleman wrote.

The outlook for Strider returning this season appears uncertain, which is unfortunate for both him and the Braves. Atlanta has struggled to keep its ace healthy over the past few years, and injuries have once again become a major concern.

The Braves will likely need to pursue another starting pitcher at the trade deadline after losing one of the top arms in their rotation. While the severity of Strider’s injury remains unknown, the latest developments have raised significant concern about what comes next.

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