Let’s talk about the latest Atlanta Braves outing from Spencer Schwellenbach because this one had all the makings of a classic “he’s human after all” moment.
When you’ve been that good for that long, like Schwellenbach has been for the Braves, it’s easy to forget that the guy’s still figuring it out on the big stage.
Coming into this game, he’d been one of the few consistent bright spots in an otherwise murky April for Atlanta. So when he takes the mound, you brace for brilliance. And for a while there? He had it.
But baseball’s a funny, cruel, unforgiving game sometimes, and it takes just a pitch or two to flip a story from dominant to “Man, what just happened?”
That Fifth Inning Spiral
The trouble started with a Myles Straw single—not exactly a red flag moment. Then came Alan Roden, a rookie with barely a handful of MLB at-bats. First pitch, hanging curveball, middle of the plate. Boom—two-run homer. Tie game. Okay, okay, deep breath. Still manageable.
But then, like a bad movie where you know what’s coming and can’t do anything to stop it, the inning unraveled. Bo Bichette, single. Vlad Jr., single.
Suddenly, Spencer’s looking at two on, one out, and up walks Anthony Santander—a new face in a Jays uniform but a known threat. And once again, the first pitch, center-cut cutter. Three-run shot. Just like that, a manageable 3-1 game morphed into 6-1, and Atlanta was chasing ghosts the rest of the way.
The What-Ifs and Could’ve-Beens
The Braves did fight back a little. Solo shots from Matt Olson and Ozzie Albies were nice on paper. But when you’re already down five, those are more like moral victories than game-changers.
If Schwellenbach had kept it to two or three runs, maybe we’re talking about a walk-off in extras instead of another “L” in the column. But hey, ifs and buts, right?
What is worth noting, though, is the pattern. Both homers came on first pitches, both from lefties. Was it a tell in the scouting report? A rhythm they picked up on? Or is it just bad execution on two pitches?
Probably the latter—but the margins in the majors are razor-thin. One missed spot can cost you the game. Two can cost you the momentum of a season.
The Braves Bigger Picture
This wasn’t the outing Schwellenbach or the Braves wanted, but it doesn’t erase what he’s done this year. If anything, it’s a reminder that development isn’t linear, and even your best arm is going to have a clunker now and then.
The key now? How he bounces back. Because if there’s one thing this Braves team needs, it’s for Schwellenbach to stay in that ace-like groove he’s shown flashes of.
So let’s file this one under “lessons learned,” move on, and hope those first pitches stay off the tee the next time he steps on the mound.
