With Chris Sale and Spencer Strider at the top, Bryce Elder enjoying a breakout year and Grant Holmes and Martín Pérez having solid seasons, the Braves’ rotation has been one of the best in the Majors.
And there’s a chance it could get even better for the season’s stretch run.
Right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach, whose promising 2025 was derailed by an elbow fracture in late June, was cleared to begin throwing in May and is targeting a late-season return.
“We were just waiting for the bone to fully heal. Got the green light [in early May] to start going, and just kind of working through the progressions now with throwing at 75 feet,” Schwellenbach told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscription required). “Everything feels really good and just trying to keep on building from there.”
Schwellenbach joined the Braves for last weekend’s series in Cincinnati, a relatively short trip from his Saginaw, Mich., hometown. After undergoing surgery in February to remove bone spurs from his elbow, he’s hoping to make it back by the end of 2026.
“Honestly, I spent the last 11 months asking about timelines: ‘Hey, if everything goes well, what’s it gonna look like for me?’ And now I’m just kind of like, ‘Hey, what’s tomorrow look like?’” he told The AJC. “I’m trying to be as present as I can, and as long as I can keep stacking good days, then I think we’ll have a good chance to be back this year. That’s the goal.”
If so, it would be big news for a Braves club with the best record in MLB at 40-20. Schwellenbach was one of the top starters in the National League in 2025 before his injury, posting a 3.09 ERA in 17 starts and striking out 108 in 110 2/3 innings.
Atlanta’s second-round Draft pick in 2021 out of Nebraska -- where he primarily played shortstop -- Schwellenbach made his debut in 2024, posting a 3.35 ERA in 21 starts.