Spencer Strider
baseball player
Spencer Strider is one of Major League Baseball’s most electrifying pitchers — a fastball specialist with record breaking strikeout rates and a reputation for relentless discipline.
- 97-98 mph fastball pitcher
- Fastest pitcher to 200 & 100 strikeouts
Behind his rise with the Atlanta Braves is a lifestyle change he made early in his professional career: in 2019, while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Strider adopted a fully vegan diet. He credits the shift with transforming his health, recovery, and long‑term wellbeing.
Since then he’s been named as an All-Star, named in the All-MLB First Team, the MLB wins leader and the MLB strikeout leader.
In 2022 he became the fastest pitcher in either the American League or National League to throw 200 strikeouts in a single season (130 innings). In 2023 the fastest pitcher in MLB history to attain 100 strikeouts in a season, achieving the feat in 61 innings. He broke his own 200 strikeouts record (123.1 innings).
His pitching styles include a four-seam fastball at 97-98 mph and a slider at 85-86 mph. He also has a curveball.
Spencer developed into a standout pitcher at Clemson University before being drafted by the Atlanta Braves. His career was nearly ended at this early stage when he required Tommy John surgery, a major operation where a tendon from elsewhere in the body is grafted into the elbow to replace a ligament.
During recovery, Strider began researching nutrition, inflammation, and long‑term health. What started as curiosity became a complete lifestyle change.
“there were also a lot of ethical and environmental concerns that I was sympathetic towards.”
Turning Vegan
Strider switched to a vegan diet in 2019, and the effects were immediate and dramatic.
“I had blood pressure that I was medicated for, [which] I always thought was a little peculiar for a 20-year-old” he says in an interview in The Guardian. “I had issues sleeping … and then there were also a lot of ethical and environmental concerns that I was sympathetic towards. I decided one day to try it and, within two weeks, I was off the hypertension medicine.”
He also found his sleep improved and inflammation was reduced.
Spencer isn’t just motivated by the health aspects, and recognises the environmental aspects in particular.
“I understand that people have differences of opinion but, nonetheless … I think factory farming is certainly problematic and not exactly what we’re supposed to be doing to the planet…I’m very conscious to the idea that any improvement, while it may seem insignificant, is still worthwhile. For me, it’s easier to be fully plant-based, but I think everybody can have a marginal improvement that would, collectively, be great for the environment and the planet.”
What He Eats
Spencer’s diet is typical of many plant-based athletes, focusing on:
- Whole grains
- Legumes
- High‑protein plant foods
- Fruit and vegetables
- Smoothies and recovery‑focused meals
- Plant‑based versions of familiar comfort foods
He has said that eating vegan has made him more intentional and structured with nutrition, which fits his reputation for meticulous preparation.
Why Spencer Strider Matters
Strider is one of the strongest examples in modern sport of a power‑based athlete thriving on a fully vegan diet. His story resonates with a lot of people because it was successful in a sport where vegans are still relatively rare.
For fans and aspiring athletes, Strider shows that veganism can support elite performance in one of the most physically demanding roles in professional sport.