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American baseball player (born 2000)
Baseball player
Spencer Drew Schwellenbach (born May 31, 2000) is an American
professional baseball
pitcher and
shortstop in the
Atlanta Braves organization.
Amateur career
Schwellenbach grew up in
Saginaw, Michigan , and attended
Heritage High School , where he was a captain of both the baseball and soccer teams.
[1] He committed to play
college baseball at
Nebraska over offers from
Michigan and
Michigan State after his sophomore season.
[2] He was named the Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year and the state's Mr. Baseball as a senior after pitching to a 6–3
win–loss record with a 0.50
earned run average (ERA) and 88
strikeouts in 56+ 1 ⁄3 innings pitched while also hitting for a .367 batting average with 44 runs scored and 20 RBIs.
[3] Schwellenbach was selected in the 34th round of the
2018 Major League Baseball Draft by the
Cleveland Indians , but opted not to sign with the team.
[4]
As a true freshman, Schwellenbach started 44 on Nebraska's games and batted .275 with five home runs and 22 RBIs.
[5] He hit .295 in 15 games as a sophomore before the season was cut short due to the
coronavirus pandemic .
[6] Following the season he played
collegiate summer baseball for the
Traverse City Pit Spitters of the
Northwoods League , where he hit for a .356 average over 22 games.
[7]
[8] After only playing as a position player in his first two collegiate seasons, Schwellenbach was added as a relief pitcher.
[9] As a junior, he was named Big Ten Player of the Year and was a second team All-American by the
Collegiate Baseball Newspaper .
[10]
[11] He was also named a semifinalist for the
Golden Spikes Award .
[12]
[13] In the NCAA Fayetteville Regional of
2021 NCAA Division I baseball tournament , Schwellenbach pitched 4+ 2 ⁄3 innings of scoreless relief and drove in the game-tying run in a 5–3 win over
Arkansas to force a deciding game 7.
[14] He was named the winner of the
John Olerud Award as the nation's best two-way player after finishing the season with a .284 batting average and a .403 on-base percentage with six home runs and 40 RBIs while also posting a 3–1 record with ten saves and a 0.57 ERA over 18 pitching appearances.
[15]
[16]
Professional career
Schwellenbach was selected in the second round with the 59th overall pick in the
2021 Major League Baseball draft by the
Atlanta Braves .
[17] He signed with Atlanta on July 19, 2021, for a $1 million
signing bonus .
[18] Shortly after signing, it was announced that Schwellenbach would undergo
Tommy John surgery to repair the
Ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow.
[19] He missed the entire 2022 season while rehabbing from surgery.
[20] Schwellenbach was assigned to the Single-A
Augusta GreenJackets at the start of the 2023 season.
[21] He was selected to play in the 2023
All-Star Futures Game .
[22]
References
^ Trotman, Jeanna (May 29, 2018).
"Heritage's Spencer Schwellenbach named Gatorade Michigan Baseball Player of the Year" .
NBC25News.com . Retrieved June 8, 2021 .
^ Bruntz, Michael (July 20, 2016).
"Michigan and Michigan State" .
247Sports . Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^ Bernreuter, Hugh (June 29, 2018).
"Saginaw Heritage ace Spencer Schwellenbach earns Mr. Baseball honor" .
MLive.com . Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^ Bernreuter, Hugh (June 7, 2018).
"Late-round MLB draft pick makes Spencer Schwellenbach's college decision easy" .
MLive.com . Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Fate brings Schwellenbach back to TC" .
Traverse City Record-Eagle . July 22, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Tantalizing talent leads Schwellenbach to role as potential two-way standout for Husker baseball" .
Lincoln Journal Star . January 29, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Schwellenbach headlines new Spitters players" .
Traverse City Record-Eagle . June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Huskers are done with summer baseball. Now it's time to build toward 2021" .
Omaha World-Herald . August 19, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"MLB draft awaits Spencer Schwellenbach, but first come his biggest moments as a Husker" .
Omaha World-Herald . April 23, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^ Bernreuter, Hugh (June 3, 2021).
"Saginaw's Spencer Schwellenbach named Big Ten Baseball Player of the Year" .
MLive.com . Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Husker baseball's Spencer Schwellenbach earns All-America honors" .
Omaha World-Herald . June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^ Ward, Andrew (April 6, 2021).
"Spencer Schwellenbach named to watch list for prestigious award" .
KLKN . Retrieved June 7, 2021 .
^
"Huskers' Schwellenbach named finalist for Golden Spikes Award" .
Lincoln Journal Star . June 8, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021 .
^ Murphy, Tom (June 7, 2021).
" 'Huskers pitch in: Pair help force decider against Hogs" .
Hot Springs Sentinel-Record . Retrieved June 8, 2021 .
^
"Nebraska's Schwellenbach receives college baseball's top two-way honor" .
^ Bernreuter, Hugh (July 12, 2021).
"Atlanta Braves draft Saginaw shortstop/pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach in second round" .
MLive.com . Retrieved July 13, 2021 .
^
"Braves draft two-way star from Nebraska in 2nd round" .
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . July 12, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2021 .
^
"Spencer Schwellenbach inks $1 million deal to start pro career with Atlanta Braves organization" .
Lincoln Journal Star . July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021 .
^
"Former Husker Spencer Schwellenbach will undergo Tommy John surgery, per report" .
Lincoln Journal Star . August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 23, 2021 .
^
"Braves' Spencer Schwellenbach: Throwing again" .
CBS Sports .
RotoWire . April 18, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2023 .
^
"Braves' Spencer Schwellenbach: Makes pro debut at Single-A" .
CBS Sports .
RotoWire . April 10, 2023. Retrieved May 8, 2023 .
^ Martin, Derek (June 27, 2023).
"Former Nebraska All-American Schwellenbach to play in All-Star Futures Game" . KMAland.com . Retrieved June 27, 2023 .
External links