PHOENIX — Braves manager Walt Weiss said Spencer Strider will throw a bullpen session Friday, a next step for the starting pitcher toward his return from a strained oblique muscle.
Strider, with the team in Arizona, began the season on the 15-day injured list after making two starts and three appearances in the Grapefruit League. He threw four innings March 11 against the Rays and then decided to shut down his preseason because of the injury.
In the spring, Strider totaled 6 1/3 innings in exhibition games. He allowed three earned runs on six hits and struck out 11.
The Braves had penciled in Strider to start one of the three opening-weekend games against the Royals before he was scratched from his final scheduled spring training appearance March 23. It’s possible he finally makes his debut during the team’s second homestand, which starts April 10, but Weiss said the right-hander will need to go on a rehab assignment before returning to the Braves.
“He’s gonna need to get built back up to some degree. That’s the case with starters, right?” Weiss added. “When they start missing time, they get deconditioned, and now you gotta build ‘em back up. There’s a process there.”
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