When a guy is pitching as good as Spencer Schwellenbach has been for the Atlanta Braves, the expectations game gets a little silly. There is no world where a guy is going to dominate every single night the way he has been as much as fans come to expect it from him.
Heading into the Braves' matchup against old friend Kevin Gausman and the Blue Jays, Schwellenbach had been one of the best pitchers in baseball and a welcome bright spot during what has otherwise been a dreadful start to the season. Unfortunately, Schwellenbach made two pitches that he probably wants back right now.
A couple of rare mistakes from Spencer Schwellenbach cost Braves chance to come back against the Blue Jays
It started innocuously enough in the fifth inning that would prove to be his undoing. After a nine pitch battle with Myles Straw that ended with a single, Toronto rookie Alan Roden came to the plate and Schwellenbach hung a first pitch curveball right down the middle that got launched for a two-run bomb that gave the Blue Jays the lead.
Rode' WORK 😤
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) April 16, 2025
Alan Roden's FIRST Big League blast! pic.twitter.com/M4K1qz9WRr
Oh well, it was a bad pitch that got punished, but it certainly wasn't backbreaking as it was still a 3-1 game. Unfortunately, a pair of good hitters in Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. got on base next to set the table for the newly acquired Anthony Santander. Another first pitch served on a silver platter down the middle, this one a cutter, got launched for a three-run shot and effectively ended the game.
I can't believe my eyes.
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) April 16, 2025
The #BlueJays have hit two home runs this inning. Anthony Santander just broke the game open with a three-run shot.
A new day has dawned. pic.twitter.com/BGkNYJnLBw
Making matters worse, solo homers later in the game from Matt Olson and Ozzie Albies would give the Braves three runs and could have given the Braves a chance to force extras where anything could happen IF Schwellenbach had kept the game close. Instead, they were more of an afterthought that kept the game from being a total embarrassment.
There are some lessons to learn here as both Roden and Santander are lefties who jumped all over the first pitch, so perhaps there is something in Schwellenbach's scouting report that gave them a clue as to what to look for. However, it feels more likely that he just made two bad pitches and this time, Schwellenbach and the Braves got punished.