Spencer Howard

Spencer Lee Howard (born July 28, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2020.
Early life.
Howard was born on July 28, 1996 in San Luis Obispo, California, and was raised in Templeton, California. He played baseball, soccer, and Ultimate Frisbee at Templeton High School, and almost gave up baseball during his junior season to play volleyball instead. With the Templeton baseball team, Howard was part of the 2014 Los Padres League championship team with Templeton, and was named the league's Player of the Year during his senior season. In his senior year, Howard compiled a 7-3 win-loss record, a 2.20 earned run average (ERA), and 87 strikeouts in innings pitched. He also maintained a .306 batting average.
Baseball career.
College career.
Howard received no scholarship offers to play college baseball, and chose to attend California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) to major in business. While at Cal Poly, Howard decided to try out for the Cal Poly Mustangs baseball team as "one last hurrah". He made the team, but elected to redshirt his freshman year in 2015 in order to put on muscle mass. During his redshirt year, Howard gained more than , took up yoga and meditation, and improved his fastball velocity from to the mid- range. That summer, Howard pitched for the collegiate summer baseball Bellingham Bells of the West Coast League, where he developed a breaking ball and a changeup under the guidance of pitching coach Jim Clem.
When Howard returned to Cal Poly in 2016, he was designated as a relief pitcher, and averaged more than 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings in his 21 season appearances.
In 2017, Howard was 8–1 with a 2.05 ERA, and was named a second team All American.
Minor league career.
Howard was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the second round (45th pick overall) of the 2017 Major League Baseball draft. He signed and made his professional debut with the Williamsport Crosscutters, going 1–1 with a 4.45 ERA in 28.1 innings pitched with 40 strikeouts (12.7 strikeouts per 9 innings).
In 2018, Howard pitched for the Lakewood BlueClaws of the Class A South Atlantic League, and threw a no-hitter during the postseason to send Lakewood to the championship round. In 23 total games started for Lakewood, he pitched to a 9–8 record with a 3.78 ERA, and 147 strikeouts (leading all Phillies minor leaguers) in 112 innings (11.8 strikeouts per 9 innings).
Howard began the 2019 season with the Clearwater Threshers of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League. Playing for four teams in three leagues in 2019, his stat line included a combined 3-1 W-L, with a 2.03 ERA, as he struck out 94 batters in 71.0 innings pitched (11.9 per 9 innings), while allowing 43 hits and 16 walks in 15 starts.
After the season, Howard was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League for the Scottsdale Scorpions, with whom he made six starts and was 1-1 with a 2.11 ERA, as he struck out 27 batters in 21.1 innings. On October 10, Howard was selected for the United States national baseball team in the 2019 WBSC Premier 12.
Major league career.
On August 9, 2020, Howard made his big league debut, with the Phillies on the road in Atlanta. He was charged with the loss, as the Braves won 8-0. Howard finished his rookie season with a 1-2 record and a 5.92 ERA with 23 strikeouts.