Blake Snell moves from San Diego to San Francisco.
The two-time Cy Young winner reportedly agreed to a two-year, $62 million deal with the Giants, ending a three-season stint with the Padres and a long, uncertain offseason. MLB Networks Jon Heyman first reported News Monday. According to several reports, Snell There is deviation After one season.
The deal comes 10 days before the start of the regular season and ends Snell's grueling free agency with agent Scott Boras. Snell was ranked No. 1 on Yahoo Sports' Top-25 entering the winter. 4 was a free agent. Ber Many reports, The Houston Astros, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Angels were also linked with interest in Snell, but he ultimately landed in San Francisco.
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Will Snell maintain his Cy Young form?
Snell, 31, is coming off a renaissance campaign that earned him his second career Cy Young Award. He posted an NL-best 2.25 ERA with a 1.189 WHIP with 234 strikeouts in 180 innings pitched in 2023. His 5.9 hits allowed per nine innings was best in the NL.
Snell has a four-pitch arsenal anchored by a high-90s fastball used to set up strikeouts, plus a slider, curveball and changeup. Despite allowing an NL-high 99 walks, his high strikeout rate allowed him to minimize damage last season.
His ERA last season was the best since his previous Cy Young season with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2018. That year, he posted an AL-best 1.89 ERA.
Snell's control or lack thereof can sometimes cause problems. Between his Cy Youngs, he posted two seasons with an ERA over 4—4.29 in 2019 and 4.20 in 2021—but at his best, he was one of baseball's most prolific pitchers. He'll provide significant upside at the top of San Francisco's rotation alongside Logan Webb, whose signings included the additions of Jorge Soler, Jung Hoo Lee and Matt Chapman in a sneaky-good Giants offseason.
A new era begins for the Padres
Snell's departure from San Diego marks the team's attempt to trim payroll after the Padres made several high-profile acquisitions in recent seasons under late owner Peter Seidler. Shortly after trading for Snell in 2020, the Padres signed fellow All-Star starter Yu Darvish. They traded for perennial MVP candidate Juan Soto at the 2022 trade deadline and signed All-Star infielder Xander Bogaerts to a $280 million free agent contract the following winter.
Those players join a roster that already featured rising star Fernando Tadis Jr. and All-Star Manny Machado and is poised to compete for San Diego's first World Series championship. And the Padres advanced to the NLCS in 2022 before collapsing in the postseason after a disappointing 82-80 campaign in 2023.
The Padres still plan to field a competitive roster in 2024 and could compete for the wild card. But the days of free-wheeling spending appear to be in the past under Seidler, who died in November.
