Blake Snell’s Goal: Locking Down New Contract Early As…

The Los Angeles Dodgers made a big splash with the signing of Blake Snell, which he initially announced on his own Instagram account.

Rather than wait for the first shoe to drop in free agency, the Dodgers got ahead of the market to acquire one of the top starting pitchers available. Snell, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, became a free agent by opting out of his contract with the San Francisco Giants.

The Dodgers had interest in the 31-year-old prior to his joining the Giants last offseason. That came after Snell unexpectedly remained a free agent as Spring Training began.

Upon reaching the open market for a second consecutive offseason, Snell was determined to avoid repeating last year by signing quickly, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic:

This time, according to a source briefed on his discussions, Snell’s intention was, “to sign as early as possible.”

Snell’s deal is pending a physical, but he’s set to join a Dodgers rotation that includes a bevy of power arms. To his decision to be the first big-name to sign, Snell and agent Scott Boras did not want to meddle with another offseason like last year.

Signing in November, rather than late March, Snell has time to settle in for a full offseason and be with a team at the start of Spring Training.

That will be of particular importance considering the Dodgers again face an accelerated timeline because of starting the season with an international series.

Blake Snell’s career

In nine seasons, Snell has been one of baseball’s most consistent and dominant performers on the mound.

The left-hander possesses an arsenal that he commands extremely well, teetering the line of being a power strikeout arm with the ability to pitch his way through any jam. In his career, Snell’s wart is the workload placed on him. However, he’s managed to avoid any arm-related injury since 2019.

During the 2023 season, Snell reached 180 innings mark for only the second time in his career. Coming off a 3.12 ERA season with the Giants, Snell’s tenure and familiarity in the National League West bodes extremely well to hit the ground running with the Dodgers.

Snell’s postseason résumé speaks for itself, owning a 3.33 ERA, with 61 strikeouts in 48.2 innings across 10 starts.