The Braves Were Reportedly Going To Include Spencer Strider in a Trade for Jacob deGrom

The hits keep coming, man. We were going to get Jacob deGrom AND get rid of Spencer Strider? I will never forgive deGrom for vetoing this deal.

Barring some sort of miraculous career turnaround, Strider is going to be a cautionary tale to teams for years to come. He burst onto the scene throwing 100 MPH, set the MLB record for fastest pitcher to 200 strikeouts in a season at 24 years old, had a 3.36 ERA through his first two seasons ... and then he signed a $75 million contract and has been hurt, bad or both ever since.

Strider has made 32 starts since the beginning of the 2024 season with a 4.78 ERA in those appearances — a number that I can't believe isn't even higher, in all honesty. He's still owed $44 million over the next two seasons and will be coming off yet another likely season-ending injury he suffered in June. It's scary stuff.

And still, Alex Anthopoulos reportedly had a deal in place that would have included Strider and gotten the Braves a big-time starter to pair with Chris Sale in the postseason. But deGrom blocked the deal and Atlanta is now left with Sale, Tyler Mahle — who, in fairness to him, has been great since he was acquired at the deadline — and an offense which boasts a 92 wRC+ since May 1 (29th in Major League Baseball). Go get 'em, boys.

I never really hated deGrom when he pitched for the Mets, because he'd go seven scoreless and then the Braves would come back from down 1-0 against the New York bullpen and win every time anyway, so it was fine. I do kinda hate him after this, though.

Sad times.