Spencer Strider's Cy Young case may have just taken a big hit following a rough 11-6 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at home on Wednesday night.
Strider got the starting nod for the Braves but had one of his worst outings of the season, allowing six runs through just a little over two innings pitched, allowing more hits than strikeouts. His final stat line for Wednesday night: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 5 K. Obviously, it's not a good start for his Cy Young odds.
Spencer Strider's final line: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 HR, 65 pitches
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) September 7, 2023
This is tied for the shortest start of his career, and was the second most runs he's allowed in a start. His ERA is 3.83.
Strider, who is one of the most fun pitchers to watch, didn't have it tonight.
For the season, Strider has a 3.83 ERA, much higher than his 2.67 from his 2022 campaign. With the loss, his season ERA has increased to 3.83, up from 3.56 prior to Wednesday's game. However, he has a league-leading 250 strikeouts and has posted a 2.89 FIP across 162.0 innings pitched.
“I didn’t give us a chance,” Strider said following the Brave's loss to the Cardinals. “It’s happened a few too many times this year.”
“It’s just the inability to make an adjustment,” he continued. “Not hitting my spots. A lot of times when you don’t hit your spots, you get the ball back. But that certainly didn’t happen tonight. I gotta figure out how to be effective when everything’s not lined up, or I don’t feel good, or if they’re taking good swings, they’re being passive, whatever it is. I gotta give us a chance to win, and I didn’t do it.”
"At some point I have to figure out how to be effective when everything doesn't go my way. Otherwise, it is going to keep happening."
— Bally Sports: Braves (@BravesOnBally) September 7, 2023
Spencer Strider on his latest outing⬇️ pic.twitter.com/bKcWuZp5ux
It seemed like not too long ago when Strider and Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher, Zac Gallen, were the front runners for the NL Cy Young this year. Now that award looks like it has become a two-way race between Blake Snell from the San Diego Padres and Justin Steele from the Chicago Cubs, with the former emerging as the favorite to land the award.
Of the three pitchers, Strider's 3.83 ERA pales in comparison to Snell's and Steele's season ERA, which sit at 2.50 and 2.55 respectively. While it's still possible that Strider can achieve a 300-strikeout season, his rough start against the Cardinals definitely does not help his case for the prestigious pitching award.
Of course, there are still games to be played so there is still time to turn it around. However, we are starting to get into the closing portion of the regular season, so if things were to turn around, Strider would have to do it quickly. His next scheduled start is on September 11th against the Philadelphia Phillies.