Braves' ace Spencer Strider excited to start Game 1 of NLDS vs Phillies: “That’s what you play for"

After an impressive regular season, right-handed pitcher Spencer Strider got the coach's nod to start Game 1 of the NLDS round between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies at SunTrust Park. The 24-year-old, who has thrown in only one postseason game before, feels grateful about the opportunity, while also concentrating on the ultimate goal to win the World Series title:

“That’s what you play for, it’s what you work for, is opportunities in the postseason. That’s been our goal as a team for the entire season. When we showed up to spring training, we expected to be here.

"In some ways, this is when the season starts for us. We did a lot of good stuff in the regular season. Some of that will carry over in some ways, but most of it won’t. So this is sort of a fresh slate.”[via The Athletic]

Despite his impressive regular season, he believes it's a fresh slate in the postseason and expects the Phillies to come firing on all cylinders:

“I think any amount of success is good — when you go into the postseason, you want to feel like you can be successful and you’ve done it before. But it’s a fresh slate. They’re a dangerous team. They had a phenomenal regular season, as well. And so we’re expecting them to come out and fire on all cylinders, and we want to be as well.”

The Atlanta Braves finished with a league-best record of 104-58 and are among the favorites to contend for the World Series. The right-handed pitcher has enjoyed his fair share of success against the Phillies, posting an 8-0 record, 1.90 ERA, 72 strikeouts, and 10 walks in 47.1 innings pitched.

Spencer Strider's 2023 season

The former Clemson Tigers pitcher started 32 games, giving 80 runs in 186.2 innings and posted an impressive 20-5 record for the Braves. Additionally, he only allowed 1.09 walks/hits per innings.

Apart from a few rough outings, he had an excellent time on the mound and finished the regular season with a 3.86 ERA, giving 22 home runs, walking 58 and striking out 281 hitters.

At one point, Strider was favored to win the Cy-Young but bad outings derailed him from doing so. He would like to translate his regular-season success into the postseason and provide the Braves a shot at winning it all.