May 29: The Braves have now formally selected Schwellenbach’s contract, per a team announcement. Right-hander Jimmy Herget was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett to open a spot on the 26-man roster. Atlanta’s 40-man roster is now at capacity (though both Acuna and Strider are easy 60-day IL cases, giving the team plenty of 40-man flexibility).
May 28: The Braves are calling up pitching prospect Spencer Schwellenbach for his major league debut, Robert Murray of FanSided reports. He’ll make his big league debut in a start tomorrow. Atlanta will need to formally select the contract of Schwellenbach, who’s not yet on the 40-man roster. The Braves already have one open 40-man spot and could easily clear another if any other moves are in the works, as they’ve not yet placed Ronald Acuna Jr. or Spencer Strider on the 60-day injured list in the wake of their season-ending injuries.
It’s a nice early birthday present for Schwellenbach, who’ll turn 24 on Friday. Selected out of Nebraska with the 59th overall pick in the 2021 draft, the former Cornhusker entered the 2024 season ranked fifth among Braves prospects at Baseball America, third at MLB.com, and as high as second according to The Athletic’s Keith Law. The former two-way star was a shortstop and closer in his college days, though the Braves have moved him to pitching full-time and settled him into a starting role. Scouting reports praise Schwellenbach for a heater he can run up to 98 mph, a pair of average-or-better breaking balls and a solid changeup.
Schwellenbach hasn’t done anything to ding his stock thus far in 2024. If anything, he’s only enhanced his standing both within the organization and throughout the game as a whole. The 6’1″, 200-pound righty has started eight games between High-A and Double-A, pitching to a combined 1.80 ERA with a 29.1% strikeout rate, 5.7% walk rate and terrific 57.5% ground-ball rate. It should be noted that six of those starts came in High-A, where Schwellenbach was old for the level and often facing younger, less-experienced competition, but it’s an impressive showing all the same.
Part of the reason behind the Braves’ decision to open Schwellenbach at High-A is their approach to his rehab from 2021 Tommy John surgery. The right-hander went under the knife not long after being drafted and missed the entire 2022 season as a result. He pitched 65 innings between Low-A and High-A last season in his return to the mound, and the Braves at least began the season with a cautious assignment before injuries throughout the pitching staff prompted what’s now a quite-aggressive promotion to the big leagues.
Atlanta is without Spencer Strider for the remainder of the season due to his own elbow surgery, and fellow prospect AJ Smith-Shawver just hit the injured list with a Grade 2 oblique strain. Righty Ian Anderson, recovering from 2023 Tommy John surgery, has yet to resume pitching. Huascar Ynoa is dealing with elbow soreness and on the minor league injured list the moment.
The Braves have other options on the 40-man roster, but none who were lined up with this spot in the rotation. Bryce Elder would’ve been going on three days’ rest, while Dylan Dodd would only be on two days’ rest. Darius Vines would perhaps have been a candidate had he not just been optioned to Triple-A four days ago (thus rendering him ineligible to be recalled for another 11 days, unless he’s directly replacing an injured player).
Schwellenbach pitched seven shutout innings against the Reds’ Double-A affiliate on May 22, so he’ll be on full rest for tomorrow’s MLB debut. And since the Braves would’ve needed to add him to the 40-man roster in the offseason anyhow — he’d otherwise have been eligible for selection in the Rule 5 Draft — they’ll take the opportunity to get a first look at the promising young righty against big league opposition. In all likelihood, it’ll be a spot start, but now that he’s on the 40-man roster at a time when the Braves are seeing their starting depth tested, he’ll have the opportunity to potentially work his way into a more prominent role over the course of the season.
According to Forebears, Average Schwellenbach Salary in United States is $49,836 USD while the Average Salary in United States is $43,149 USD. So, he should be making some decent coin compared to the average U.S. ball player.
I wonder how many Schwellenbachs are out there for such a comparison
153 in the U.S.
Due to increase after he is studded out, surely
I’m friends with his GF on IG it’s surreal to see her post him advancing to AA then 2 weeks later he’s in the bigs. Pretty cool.
@Hotdog 2
Old enough to shake hands with Ty Cobb.
Good thing the letters are smaller on the jerseys this year. Sheesh lol
No matter….congrats and welcome to the show!
Let the alphabet rainbow begin!
He’s gonna do schwell today
A-grade last name
Oh Spencer how I have waited for this day, my sunshine. You are the savior my bravos have needed this year, and you will be our knight in shining armor my love bug I’m so proud. Ever since the day you were drafted I knew you were going to be a star, oh how much I adore you! My sweet precious child go and be a STAR!!!
Please put out his favorite spiderman PJs & sing him a lullaby tonight, need him to be well rested for tomorrow
Whoa. Seems a tad early in his development. He’s been injured and hasn’t been a starter much in the minors (nor in his career), so this seems like a leap. In fact, think pitching was something he picked up at Nebraska. Idk. THAT SAID, I think he’s incredibly talented and could easily be a nice addition to the team for sure. Rooting for him. Braves were rumored to be taking him in the first round when they drafted him. Opted to go a different way and were able to get him in the 2nd round if I recall correctly. High upside
Yeah I think he’s gonna be good long term but this is the guy you trade for a pennant chase not the guy who helps you win one.
@Blackpinkj: This is the guy you keep because of his rise in the system and because they’ll need AJSS, Waldrup and Schwellenbach to help retool the pitching staff next season. Will also help w/their luxury tax situation as they salaries of Morton and Fried are subtracted. There’s a chance they could be showcasing him for a trade, but imo he figures more prominently in their rotation plans for the next 5 years.
Rise in the system? He’s pitched 110 innings total in the minors. Never seen AAA.
Braves fan are crazy optimistic. Like you just got married and can foresee no problems whatsoever.
Maybe “rise in their internal evaluations'” would have been a better choice of phrasing. He did rise rapidly from low A to AA . That’s a “rise in the system.” Why do your opinionated replies usually include an insult?
Strider didn’t see AAA either. In Schwellenbach’s case, the combination of injury and ineffectiveness of others coupled w/the timing of their 2 AAA options in Vines and Elder being less available puts the Braves into position to promote Schwellenbach now.
@Blackpink
As a Braves fan, yes I do have high hopes for him. Just as the majority of fans do with guys in their system.
However, according to the article he is not just rising in the Braves system, he is rising in all of baseball……Steve Adams says “If anything, he’s only enhanced his standing both within the organization and throughout the game as a whole”……
Are Braves fans optimistic? YES we are. Are we “crazy optimistic? Maybe not as much as you think. This is a guy climbing up prospect lists, 110 innings or not.
Strider only had 90 minor league innings. Most pitchers are unfortunately destined for TJS; might as well get as many big league innings out of them as you can.
Like I said in my first post that you wild homers seemed to have ignored this is a guy you trade for a pennant run not a guy who helps you win a pennant. I know he’s moving up prospect lists. I know he’s played well. But jumping from barely pitching in AA to the big leagues isn’t smart.
Brave fans are excited to see him pitch. Like everyone’s debut there is only one. I don’t remember seeing anyone thinking this is Paul Skiens or 19 year old Doc Gooden. He has a total of 110 innings pitched in the minors. Just like when AJSS had when he was brought up early. Two different people. The results will be different. Is it exciting, yes. Why wouldn’t it be. He is not going to be Spencer Strider And no one thinks that. To say he is not a pitcher you get to win the pennant or whatever—that’s your narrative you keep correcting people and saying the Braves are not smart for doing this. Okay. They have one of the best built teams in the game. When they brought up Spencer Strider it was aggressive and it worked out okay. Probably was not a smart move, but a miracle worked out. I don’t think anyone is expecting Schwellenback to be anything other than a player who has made 24 starts in his life. This is good experience for him and he will be rule 5 eligible next year so he will be on the 40 no matter what. Good for everyone. No one needs to be label ‘not smart’ for this simple and repeated action from the Braves. When they believe in someone they move them aggressively—see examples of MHII, Strider, AJSS, A Jones (kidding of course, but he was 19 and played a few games in AA).
The 40 man stuff doesn’t matter. He’s one of the Braves top prospects he will be placed on the 40 man one way or another.
Isn’t there someone in AAA that deserves a shot?
None of the AAA starters lined up for this spot start. Elder was closest and he would have been on only 3 days rest. Vines has to wait 10 more days before he can be recalled after being sent down 5 days ago. Holmes started Saturday, Dodd on Sunday. Winans is injured. Only other healthy option would have been Waldrup in AA but he took his regular turn on Monday. Schwellenbach’s next man up as today would have been his start in AA Mississippi.
He’s been better than Waldrup this season and had to be added to the 40 man roster by the end of the year anyway so makes sense. He’d be Rule 5 draft eligible this Winter.
@bravesfan: He was the starting SS and closer at Nebraska. He fell to the 2nd round in the draft because he needed TJS. He was my “sleeper” pick in ST this year to make ML starts this season. Injury and ineffectiveness of others is giving him his shot. Glad to see him getting this opportunity over the Quad A arms at AAA. Waldrup’s next. Going to need both of them next year if Fried and Morton are gone.
While most of his season was spent at A+ ball his short stint in AA went as follows : 13 innings, no runs, and a 0.46 WHIP. I’d say he’s on a good run.
Unfortunately, he is way old for those levels.. I see him as a run of the mill middle reliever at best.
I’m not really speculating on how good he will be in his career as I dont know enough about him. Just that it makes sense to call him up while he’s pitching great because he’s more likely to taste some success and help the club which could even lead to some teams having interest if you needed to make a trade. The Braves have shown off guys at a peak several times when it has resulted in other teams being interested in the player based on that showing largely.
Yes, I agree that the time is right to call him up while he is hot. Same with anyone, even 30 year old players. Good point about showcasing him, especially with all the talk about them acquiring an OF. Might be part of a package if he throws well.
The last sp named Spencer the Braves called up, struck out nearly 300 in a season. Let’s see what this Spencer can do.
Why not Waldrep?
hes only pitched in 17 minor league games.
Schwellenbach has only pitched in 24.
maybe they have to get 24 before they get called up LMAO. :3
Schwell was higher on the depth chart I’m guessing, they sent him to Arizona Fall League last season (but not Waldrep)
to be fair, he’s better right now too
My bad oops, it wasnt the Fall League, it was the Futures Game
all good man, Im not gonna get mad over a mistake haha…. don’t worry :3
he’s shown better command than Waldrep but getting an early look before his rule 5 eligibility kicks in is probably another factor. I’m sure both will debut sometime this summer though.
They’ve probably seen enough from the AAAA guys like Dodd, Winans, Vines and even Elder to give others a shot.
This seems like a Schwell idea.
There can be only one Spencer. The Kurgan is coming.
Swollen back?
Or maybe a full stream.
The Braves season has gone to Schwellenbach
Very very nicely done.
I’d rather have Big Train Walter Johnson in his prime.
I would rather have a non-declining and non-fragile and non-unclutch version of Mike Trout who can deliver in the clutch for a change for once in his career.
The first of many times that he will be rocked by the Nats. Welcome to the show kid
Not as bad as Patrick Corbin has, that’s for sure.
Pirates: RHP Ashcroft or RHP Burrows for Braves: 1B/3B McCabe? Thoughts? Both of needs for both clubs. McCabe could give the Pirates much needed 1B help and Ashcroft or Burrows can give the Braves some pitching depth or starter. Ashcroft is closer to the MLB than Burrows on paper. But Burrows did makes a few appearances last year for the Pirates.
Cons for McCabe, strikes out a ton and has poor pitch recognition. Pros: hits for power and decent glove at 1B/3B.
Cons for Ashcroft or Burrows, struggles with consistency at the major league level. When on for either of them, they look like solid mid rotation starters. Pros: They both have major league experience and can attack the strike zone. Both can be placed in the bullpen if Braves believe one of their starters returning are more suitable in the rotation than either of the two.
2 for 1 is an overpay and I think 1 of the two is enough to have player for player trade here. Makes sense to me
No thanks. They’re keeping McCabe. “strikes out a ton and has poor pitch recognition.” Weird, since he drew 80 walks to go along with his 113 k’s last season in the minors.
113 Ks is a lot of strike outs. What is that 30% Ks and 9% walk ratio in his minor league career. He is no Pujols, Jose Baustisa, and other feared hitters in the history of MLB. He might be Pedro Alvarez version though and fades out of the MLB after 5 years.
If the Braves trade McCabe it will be part of a package for a proven SP or possibly an OF at this point.
McCabe alone will not get that. He is ranked 9th in prospect rankings in Atlanta’s system. Ashcroft and Burrows are ranked 6th and 10th respectively in a heavy loaded farm system. It’s hard to not consider one of Ashcroft and Burrows when the Braves are bring up a AA guy (most of his time in high A).
You sure you want to trade for an injured player? McCabe’s out w/TJS. braves25 may be right, but the Braves will definitely be selling very low on him at this time.
I would be open to it to be honest. Pirates lack 1B depth and it’s an issue around the league. I don’t see Braves utilising McCabe (when healthy) due to his high strike out numbers. Pirates at least will give him a shot like they have with Jack Suwinski (who strikes out at similar numbers of McCabe). It was just a trade idea anyways.
I agree w/you that McCabe probably doesn’t have much of a future in the Braves organization. Can’t imagine you guys giving up much for him.
Go Big Red
He played for my home town Traverse Cit Pit Spitters.
His start was delayed until tomorrow to allow extra time for the person who puts the player’s names on the back of their uniforms to finish Spencer’s.
Braves have 2 mlb experience starters in aaa and they pick this player.
Read the article. Vines has to stay down for another 11 days before he can be recalled. Elder would be going on 3 days rest and has been abysmal this season. Good time to give a prospect w/high upside a look.
Why not keep trying, at least for a short stay at major league level, 1 or 2 starts of future studs? Likely a better idea, and shouldn’t harm their development – better than continuing to use Vines, Elder, or Dodd – all of whom have not delivered the control necessary to be effective and consistent soft tossers. Worst case: we lose the game just like with the afore mentioned starters.
When the staff is in deep need, keep throwing the “spaghetti” against the wall!
I like it barber. Let’s see Schwellenbach and Waldrup get some starts. Hope I never see Dodd in Atlanta again. Meh on Elder and Vines too. Openers, middle inning relievers, or trade bait the both of them. Elder just has to be too fine on the edges to get by and he doesn’t seem to have the command to do it now. None of the three have the “pure stuff” to get through orders more than once when their command isn’t good. You can add Winans to the Dodd, Vines, and Elder list.
Of the 4 of those guys, Elder’s the only one I still have some hope for being able to carve out a role w/the Braves.
But when can we see Ken Giles? He’s looked good for some time.
A distant cousin of Daniel Vogelbach
I hear they go way Bach …
the font size on the jersey will be interesting.
It seems they maybe rushing him
The pride of Saginaw Heritage High School !!
I love it, Schwellenbach & Waldrep have both been extra good this year so far.. There are also two other guys at AAA that might be worth an opportunity or look this year, and they are journeyman Holmes and Logue, but we’ll see what happens. Holmes last 20ip 4er 22k 6bb 0.87whip, seems they’ve been stretching him out a bit, Waldrep in May has 30.1 ip 31k 4er ohr 7bb 1.09whip, that’s excellent.
The footage I have seen of Schwellenbach shows great potential, even if he doesn’t go well in his debut I am sure he has the makings of an MLB pitcher, and I can’t wait to see Waldrep get a go in future.
Now if Riley, Olson and the rest of the lineup can pick it up a bit we may just score more than 3 runs pg. Ozuna is more than doing his job carrying the team, the rest have to put their hand up.
Oh wow, this move by Braves is so huge it has actually been referred to in the 1st, 2 out of 3 stories. Really lol
Best Spencer in the org
13 innings above A ball
Interesting braves are calling him up so soon
The Braves were reported to be promoting him to AAA Gwinnett when AJSS was called up. Smith-Shawver’s Grade 2 oblique injury will keep him out for approximately 2 months. Schwellenbach’s combination of MLB readiness and upside talent has seemingly convinced the Braves to slot him above the Quad A arms at AAA. The most practical reason he’s being given the start today may be is that the other options for the spot start have either pitched in the last couple of days (Waldrep, Holmes, Elder,) is injured (Winans,) has been brutally ineffective (both Dodd and Elder,) or can’t be recalled because of a recent demotion (Vines.) Timing is everything. W/the possible exception of Waldrup, he’s more talented than any of those other arms anyway.
In other words, everyone’s hurt or ineffective so Atlanta is forced to rush Schwellenbach to the majors if they wanna make the playoffs this year whether he’s ready or not
You missed the part where 4 of their AAA rotation and best AA pitcher all pitched in the last couple of days. Only 1 of them is injured (Winans.) NONE of them could have made this spot start. Elder on 3 days rest had the most time between starts out of the five of them. They preferred to start Schwellenbach on his normal rotation day. Atlanta wasn’t “forced” to do anything.
Here we go again. The Braves absolutely screwed up rushing AJ Smith/Shawver from barely pitching in AA to the majors. AJ may never be the same again. Now they are about to do the same to Spencer S. The Braves need to stop rushing their top pitching prospects to the majors. Don’t screw up the future for today
Bucsfan4ever
Was Skenes ‘rushed’ into MLB too? Asking for a friend.
The Braves were ready to turn over the 5 spot in the rotation to AJSS. A Grade 2 oblique injury isn’t going to end his career. He pitched 1 1/3 innings after he injured himself because he wasn’t even sure he was hurt. Pitchers are fragile. He didn’t tweak an oblique because the Braves won’t “stop rushing their top pitching prospects to the majors.”