The Atlanta Braves, victims of three-straight losses and now trailing their division-rival Mets by 2.5 games, received more bad news on Saturday morning. They announced that potential Rookie of the Year Spencer Strider was moved to the 15-day Injured List with a strained oblique, backdated to September 21st.
Due to the injury designation, he will not be available until the final day of the regular season. He has been a critical piece to the Braves' rotation and was figuring to be one of the featured starters against the division rival New York Mets next weekend.
The rookie phenom has been spectacular for the stability of the rotation. Strider has not only been the best rookie pitcher in baseball, but he also ranks among the best in the league. Through 20 starts and 131.2 innings pitched, he has accounted for 202 strikeouts with a 2.67 ERA and a sub 1.000 WHIP.
All is not lost for the Braves, having already clinched a slot in the 2022 playoffs, and there is still a chance that he could return ahead of that.