Philadelphia Phillies to face Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Strider on Opening Day
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The stage is almost set, the Bank will be rocking soon and the Philadelphia Phillies now know who they'll be up against next Thursday on Opening Day.
The Atlanta Braves on Tuesday named right-handed pitcher Spencer Strider as their Opening Day starter. Strider will make his first career Opening Day start.
Strider will oppose Phillies ace Zack Wheeler when the two teams clash at Citizens Bank Park on Thursday, March 28.
A Tale of Two Striders
No one struck out more batters, no one had a higher whiff percentage and no one won more games last season than Spencer Strider.
Strider won 20 games with a 3.86 ERA and 281 strikeouts in 186 2/3 innings for Atlanta in 2023, his second season in MLB. His 2.85 Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) led National League starters and was second in the majors.
He dominated the Phillies in four regular-season starts in 2023, striking out 38 in 26 innings and winning all four games. He struck out 18 Phillies in two wins at Citizens Bank Park.
In fact, Strider has been a thorn in the Phillies' side in each of the last two seasons - he's 8-0 with 72 strikeouts in 47 1/3 innings.
But the script drastically changed once the playoffs rolled around.
Philadelphia has faced Strider twice at the Bank, once in the 2022 National League Division Series and once in 2023's NLDS.
The Phils tagged Strider for eight runs in two starts, beating him twice.
Nick Castellanos slugged two tanks against Strider in Game 4 of last year's NLDS, and Rhys Hoskins took Strider deep in Game 3 of the 2022 NLDS and then spiked his bat.
Wheels up
For the first time since 2017, a starting pitcher not named Aaron Nola will be on the mound for the Phillies on Opening Day.
On St. Patrick's Day, the Phillies named ace Zack Wheeler their Opening Day starter, ending Nola's streak of six straight Opening Day starts. It will be Wheeler's first-ever Opening Day start.
Nola's six straight Opening Day starts is the third-longest streak in Phillies history, trailing Robin Roberts' 12 and Steve Carlton's 10.
Wheeler, who turns 34 in May, signed a historic three-year, $126 million contract extension with the Phillies earlier in March. His extension carries a $42 million annual average value, the highest ever by a Phillie, and the highest AAV ever in a contract extension.
The righty has been one of baseball's best pitchers since joining the Phillies in 2019.
By Baseball-Reference's Wins Above Replacement (WAR) metric, he's been the best starter in baseball - his 19.4 WAR is the highest among starting pitchers since 2020, his first season in Philly.