Spencer Schwellenbach

Schwellenbach was one of the biggest surprises of the 2024 season, as he posted a 3.35 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 127:23 K:BB across 123.2 innings spanning 21 starts for Atlanta after getting the call in late May. He was especially stingy down the stretch, going 5-2 with a 2.47 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and six strikeouts for every one walk in his final 73 innings. While he had some prospect pedigree as a second-round pick in 2021, this level of success was impossible to foresee for a player that had not pitched above the High-A level coming into the season. After missing all of 2022 following Tommy John surgery, Schwellenbach made his professional debut in 2023, pitching a total of 65 innings that year. In another day and age, the jump from 65 innings to 168.2 total frames last season would scare some drafters off, but conventional wisdom regarding pitching injuries has been challenged in recent years. Most will be eager to draft an arm of this caliber, so long as the pitcher is ostensibly healthy in the moment. A jump in strikeouts is possible with his six-pitch mix and 96th percentile chase rate.