When Cincinnati’s star Elly de La Cruz vomited in the outfield during an extreme 92-degree game against the St. Louis Cardinals, it became a stark reminder of the heat’s brutal impact on baseball. The incident highlighted how extreme temperatures can turn elite athletes into struggling players within innings. But while some players succumb to the heat, others have found innovative ways to conquer it. One Braves pitcher discovered an unconventional hydration strategy that transformed potential disaster into dominant performance.

Braves starter Spencer Schwellenbach knew he was walking into a furnace when he took the mound against the Mets during last week’s scorching heat wave. Want to guess what his game plan was? While other pitchers might have simply hoped for the best, this young hurler decided to flood his system with an almost ridiculous amount of water and electrolytes. What happened next turned what could have been a meltdown into a masterpiece—seven scoreless innings that left even Schwellenbach amazed at his strategy.

The young pitcher’s approach was anything but subtle. Well, you know how most players prepare for hot games? Schwellenbach drained four to five bottles of water before even leaving his house that morning, then continued the deluge at the ballpark with sodium tablets and electrolytes.

“I was peeing, like, every 30 minutes. It was unbelievable. But during the game, I felt good, ” Schwellenbach admitted. The constant bathroom breaks might have seemed inconvenient, but they were a sign that his extreme hydration plan was working. TBH, it makes sense—with temperatures hovering in the mid-80s, Schwellenbach dominated, proving that sometimes the most uncomfortable preparation leads to the most comfortable performance.

This wasn’t just theoretical for Schwellenbach or the Braves organization. Atlanta had already experienced extreme heat conditions firsthand during their 2025 home opener against Miami, when the team played in record-breaking temperatures that flirted with 90 degrees, significantly hotter than their previous home openers, which saw much cooler 64-degree conditions in 2024 and 70 degrees in 2022. The dramatic temperature swing from previous seasons served as a wake-up call for players about the increasing intensity of summer heat.

With weather forecasters warning that temperatures could reach record-breaking territory throughout the season, Schwellenbach’s willingness to endure the inconvenience of constant hydration and bathroom visits suddenly looked less like overkill and more like an essential preparation for surviving baseball’s increasingly brutal summer conditions.

Braves lead the way as MLB teams fight extreme heat conditions

Not only did Schwellenbach and Braves players suffer from the extreme heat conditions, but teams across Major League Baseball found themselves battling temperatures that transformed games into endurance tests. The New York Yankees, fresh off a great run with Baltimore, hoped to continue their momentum in Cincinnati. Instead, they melted under brutal 93-94 degree temperatures, facing a devastating 6-1 loss to the Reds.

The Yankees went 0 for 12 with runners in scoring position, stranding nine men on base despite having the tying run at the plate in the eighth inning. Manager Aaron Boone pointed directly to the weather: “I was like, because you know, whatever it was here—93, 94—and when we walked outside, I was like, ‘I think it’s hotter at home.’ It’s brutal.”

Meanwhile, the Mets took a smarter approach to the NYC heatwave. With extreme heat warnings issued, they pushed back reporting times, trimmed batting practice, and displayed “Drink water!” reminders in the clubhouse. Manager Carlos Mendoza emphasized preparation: “I know our group will continue to provide information and education to the players, as far as staying hydrated.”

While De La Cruz vomited in the outfield and the Yankees wilted under pressure, Schwellenbach’s bathroom-break marathon proved that baseball’s new reality demands uncomfortable preparation, where drinking gallons becomes as crucial as throwing strikes.