In 2011, Snell was home-schooled until pitching for Shorewood High School in Shoreline, Washington. "I was only home-schooled for my junior year. I ended up getting home-schooled because I wasn't taking school as serious as my mom would have liked me to do," Blake said. "She told me she would do that, but I didn't think she would be serious. She told me, 'We're going to give you a year of home school with your brother, and if you do that and you're ready to go back, I'll let you go back.'

"Me and him, we didn't really screw around too much, he wanted to go back. It was a lesson to be learned."

Blake's father, Dave Snell, pitched six minor league seasons, reaching Double-A. He schooled Snell and his three brothers, including twin Tyler, who played in junior college.

“He humbles me pretty quick,” Snell says of Tyler. “So I could throw a no-hitter, and he would say, ‘It’s because you didn’t face me—I’d take you deep.’ ”

Snell spends off-seasons back home in Washington state, collecting Jordan brand shoes—he’s got around 200 pairs—and cheering for the Seahawks. He’s passionate about his hometown Washington Huskies and his dog Junior, a chocolate lab.

“No tobacco, no booze, no girlfriend. His best friend is his dog,” Bosman jokes. “He’s just totally determined to get to the big leagues. He’s just zeroed in on where he wants to go.”

In 2011, Blake got drafted by the Rays (see Transactions below). 

In 2012, he would have led the Appalachian League with a 2.09 ERA if he hadn't fallen seven innings short of qualifying because Tampa Bay shut him down with fatigue in mid-August.

In 2012, Baseball America rated Snell as the 20th-best prospect in the Rays' organization. They moved Blake all the way up to #7 in the winter before 2013 spring training. He was at #14 in the spring of 2014.

He was rated 9th-best prospect in the Rays' farm system in the offseason before 2015 spring camps opened. But in 2016, they moved him up to the #1 rated prospect in Tampa's organization.

Blake needs to add strength to his lanky frame so that he can handle the wear and tear of a full season of pro ball. (December 2013)

August 2, 2014: Snell threw a rain-shortened, 5 1/3-inning no-hitter for high Class A Charlotte in a 10-0 win against Daytona on Aug. 2, logging nine strikeouts.

In 2014, Snell was named the Rays' Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

In 2014, Snell improved the mental side of his game and that made a huge difference. "I think it was me growing up, doing a little more maturing, understanding this is something I want to do and this is something I need to take seriously,” Snell said.

One sign of the change was being more open to coaching, first with Bill Moloney when Snell was sent back to low Class A Bowling Green to open the season, then with Steve Watson after his promotion to high Class A Charlotte.

“I’ve always had overpowering stuff; I didn’t know how to use it,” Snell said. “So now I’m learning from my coaches and focusing on what I should be doing, and that’s how I had the year I had.”

Rays farm director Mitch Lukevics said, "Blake is a classic example of a kid needing to grow up."

“He’s really matured,” Lukevics said. “These young high school kids, sometimes they are not as mature as what you’d like. And I think he will tell you over the course of his young journey he’s matured. Not only has he matured mentally, but he’s matured physically as well. And with that evolution, and that maturation, his stuff is pretty exciting.” (Marc Topkin - 11/07/2014 - Baseball America)

In 2015, Blake was chosen by the Rays to represent them in the All-Star Futures Game.

In 2015, Snell was Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year. Blake had one of the best seasons in years: He finished 15-4, 1.41 ERA overall, which included 163 strikeouts in 134 innings. His 1.41 ERA, which led all minor league qualifiers, is the lowest for a full-season pitcher since Justin Verlander’s 1.29 ERA in 2005. And Blake ranked among the leaders in wins (tied for fourth), strikeouts (also tied for fourth), WHIP (ninth, 1.02) and opponents' average (first, .182).

Blake began 2015 with the Stone Crabs before 21 scoreless innings earned him a promotion to Double-A Montgomery. There, Snell continued to run up zeroes until his streak stopped at 49 scoreless innings. A late-July promotion to Triple-A Durham followed, and Snell led all minor league starters with a 1.41 ERA, ranked second with a .182 opponent average and fourth with 10.9 strikeouts per nine innings.

Rays ace Blake Snell used doubt to fuel his award-winning performance. He felt he needed to prove something last season after being sent down to the minors in 2017.

"I heard a lot of people saying I won't, or I can't," Snell told Gabe Lacques of USA TODAY. "It kind of pissed me off. And I said, 'I will. I don't care what you say. Just watch.'

"I made it happen and that's all that matters to me."

Snell, 26, believes his "mentality is really everything" on the mound.

"So when I pitch, it's violently personal. You're just not going to beat me, is the way I have to look at it," the Seattle native said. "Sometimes you lose, but it's all about understanding how I'm going to get that guy out this time as well as next time."  (Tom Ruminski - theScore - Feb. 27, 2019)

June 2023: Blake Snell, SD, NL Pitcher of the Month

Snell was a strikeout machine in June, tallying double-digit Ks in each of his final four starts and finishing the month with 53 Ks over 31 innings. The left-hander registered a 0.87 ERA and a 0.68 WHIP over five starts, holding opponents to a .124 batting average and .384 OPS along the way.

Now a three-time Pitcher of the Month Award winner, Snell previously earned AL honors twice during his 2018 Cy Young Award season with the Rays. He’s the second straight Padres pitcher to be named NL Pitcher of the Month after Michael Wacha won the award at the end of May.

Nov 14, 2023: Snell put himself alongside some of the game’s greats by earning his second Cy Young Award. Pairing this one with his 2018 AL honor with the Rays, he became the seventh pitcher to earn the honor in each league. He joins Gaylord Perry, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens, Roy Halladay and Max Scherzer. (S O'Neill - MLB.com - Nov 15, 2023)

May 22, 2024: It's an exciting time for Snell beyond his return from injury, too, as he's expecting his first child in the coming days.

May 23-26, 2024: Blake was on the paternity list.

Aug 2, 2024: For all his accomplishments, there was one feat that had long eluded Blake Snell. He had never completed eight innings over his nine-year Major League career, much less come close to throwing a complete game. His inability to do so gnawed at him, so much so that he vowed to finally go the distance this year.

“There’s been a bunch of crap about him not going deep into games,” catcher Patrick Bailey said. “We were joking about it the other day. I was like, ‘We’re going to go nine shutty together.’ I think one of us was like, ‘Why not just throw a no-hitter?’” That vision came to life when a dominant Snell threw the 18th no-hitter in Giants history in a series-opening 3-0 win over the Reds at Great American Ball Park.

“They can’t say it anymore,” said Snell, who also earned his first win for San Francisco. “Complete game, shutout, no-hitter. Leave me alone. 'He doesn't go into the 9th. He doesn't go into the 8th.' Just did it. Leave me alone.”

It was the first no-hitter by a Giant since Chris Heston twirled one against the Mets on June 9, 2015, and the third no-no in MLB this season after the Padres’ Dylan Cease (July 25 at Washington) and the Astros’ Ronel Blanco (April 1 vs. Toronto).

“That’s as nervous as I’ve been in a long time,” manager Bob Melvin said. “I wanted that for him so bad. If anybody has the stuff to throw a no-hitter, it’s Blake Snell. It finally came through. Pitched nine innings of no-hit ball. He’s got that feather in his cap, which is pretty cool.”

COMPLETE GAME

Taking the mound following a one-hour rain delay, Snell showed he was locked in from the start, needing only 11 pitches to strike out the side in the first inning. He didn’t stop rolling from there, racking up 11 punchouts while allowing only three baserunners to reach on a trio of walks. 

“A special night for him,” Reds manager David Bell said. “He was really good. We tried to lock in, get ahead and be ready to hit. He had great stuff. He pitched a really incredible game.” 

Snell had thrown seven no-hit innings twice before in his career -- against the D-backs on Aug. 31, 2021, and vs. the Rockies on Sept. 19, 2023 -- but he entered uncharted territory once he got through eight frames. Snell was up to 108 pitches after eclipsing his previous personal best of 7 2/3 innings, but there wasn’t much question that he would be allowed to return to the mound and pitch into the ninth for the first time in his career. 

“I wasn’t going to say a whole lot to him,” Melvin said. “He was a bit tired, and he’s never been in the ninth inning before. But there comes a point in time where it’s kind of destiny for him, especially the way he’s been throwing.”

Buoyed by a fresh wave of adrenaline, Snell struck out Santiago Espinal swinging on a curveball, induced a weak comebacker from Jonathan India and then coaxed a lineout from Elly De La Cruz to cap his 114-pitch gem. Mike Yastrzemski, who entered the game as a defensive replacement for starting right fielder Jerar Encarnacion in the bottom of the eighth, raced into the gap to catch De La Cruz’s 91.6 mph liner for the final out, thrusting his arms in the air before running in to join his teammates in mobbing Snell.

Snell leaned on his electric fastball-curveball combination to generate 21 swinging strikes, though he took extra pride in being able to field his position and throw out India for the second out in the ninth.

“The PFP [pitchers’ fielding practice], I was pretty excited about that,” Snell said. “I made a good throw there.”

Tyler Fitzgerald went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an RBI double, and Casey Schmitt also went deep to back Snell, who now has a sparkling 0.55 ERA (two earned runs over 33 innings) in five starts since returning from the injured list.

“That was the coolest thing I’ve ever been a part of,” Fitzgerald said. “He was unhittable.” (M Guardado - MLB.com - Aug 3, 2024) 

Baseball has a secret compartment of weird-but-true stats that seem impossible: Until recently, this was among them: Blake Snell had more Cy Young awards (2) than starts in which he’d finished the eighth inning (0).

Well, we can scratch that one off the list. Friday, August 2, 2024, Snell started (and finished) the ninth inning for the first time in his career and did so without allowing a single hit to the Reds. It was one of the most ridiculous, energizing and demonstrative displays from a pitcher in team history. In the 141 years of the franchise, there have been just 18 no-hitters.  No pitcher had ever started more games in baseball history without getting through eight full innings. 

“They can’t say it anymore,” Snell said afterward. “Complete game. Shutout. No-hitter. Leave me alone.” (Weaver/Brisbee - Aug 5, 2024 - The Athletic)

Aug 5, 2024: Blake won NL Player of the Week, thanks to his no-hitter.

 Dec. 2024: Blake and Haeley Ryane have been dating for over two years now, although an exact start date for when they started is not known. They have a son named Shordy together, too, who was born in May of 2024. Ryane posted about her engagement to Snell on Dec. 28, which was held at a private event with friends and family.

One such family member is Ryane's sister, Hunter, who is married to Zach LaVine of the Chicago Bulls. It was at a Bulls game that Snell and Ryane's engagement went public. News of the two's engagement was publicized on the jumbotron, and the crowd erupted in celebration. (Bailey Bassett -Dec 30, 2024)

Aug 23-26, 2025: Blake was on the paternity list. Blake and his wife, Haeley, welcomed their second child to the world. 

Brilliant efficiency in the post-season.

Blake hears it. He knows what reputation he carries to the mound. He understands the narrative around him, the idea that he nibbles too much for a two-time Cy Young winner. Walks too many guys. Will put up zeroes, but run his pitch count up and cannot pitch deep enough into games. Will put up eye-popping numbers but has not separated himself among the best in the sport. 

“I laugh at it because I know it’s not true,” Snell said. “I know that because I’m the one throwing the ball.”

October is where legacies get crafted and narratives get busted, and on an evening like Snell had on Game 1 of the NLCS, you can show who you’ve always thought you are. Snell struck out 10, setting a postseason best for himself while pitching into the eighth inning or later for just the sixth time in his major-league career.

His sequencing all but taunted a Brewers lineup that had no answer as he fired changeup after changeup. There was no touching Snell over 103 pitches. (Ardaya - Oct 14, 2025 - The Athletic)

TRANSACTIONS

June 2011: Blake signed with the Rays after they made him a supplemental first round pick (#52 overall), out of Shorewood High School in Shoreline, WA. He got a $684,000 bonus, via scout Paul Kirsch. He passed up a baseball scholarship to the University of Washington.

March 20, 2019: Snell and the Rays agreed to a five-year, $50 million contract extension. The deal extends through 2023. And Snell could make an additional $2 million in incentives.

Dec. 27, 2020: The Rays traded Snell to the Padres; acquiring Luis Patino, Francisco Mejia, Cole Wilcox and Blake Hunt.

Nov 2, 2023: The Padres extended qualifying offers to Snell.

March 19, 2024: The Giants signed the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner to a two-year, $62 million deal. The contract includes an opt-out clause after one season.

Snell will earn $15 million in 2024 with a $17 million signing bonus, payable on January 15, 2026. He'll earn $30 million in 2025, of which $15 million will be deferred and paid on July 1, 2027.

Because Snell rejected a qualifying offer from the Padres, the Giants will lose their third-round Draft pick in 2024, as well as $500,000 from their international bonus pool for the upcoming signing period. San Francisco had already forfeited its second-round pick after signing Matt Chapman, who also declined a qualifying offer.

Nov 1, 2024: Snell exercised his opt-out clause with the Giants, becoming a free agent. It is the second straight offseason he is hitting the open market after he signed a two-year, $62 million deal with San Francisco last March.

Snell, a lefty, has an 91-97 mph 4-seam late-moving FASTBALL that rates a 70 grade on the 20-80 scouting scale. He also has an 85-88 mph SLIDER with sharp horizontal break down and away from lefthanders and gets an average 50 grade, plus an above-average 78-81 mph CURVEBALL that grades 60 and is his primary breaking pitch, and an above-average (a 55 grade) 85-89 mph CHANGEUP that has good fade and depth and misses bats.

Blake has elite arm speed. The loose wrist and ability to spin a breaking ball from high school have translated into the swing-and-miss breaking balls that Snell throws now. Consistency with both remains a final piece for Snell to polish, as well as quickening his times to the plate and improving his command. He gets a 45 grade for his control. (Spring, 2016)

2016 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 57.2% of the time; Sinker .1% of the time; Change 17.8%; Slider 12.2% of the time; and Curve 12.8% of the time.

2017 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 55.1% of the time; Change 21.1% of the time; Slider 13.5% of the time; and Curve 10.3% of the time.

2018 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 51.5% of the time; Change 19.2%; Slider 9.1%; and his Curve 20.2% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 96.5 mph, Change 88.2, Slider 88.7, and Curve 81.9 mph.

2019 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 48.9% of the time; Change 20.4%; Slider 6.7%; and his Curve 24.1% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 95.9 mph, Change 86.8, Slider 87.7, and Curve 81.4 mph.

2020 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 46% of the time; Change 20%; Slider 17.2%; and his Curve 16.9% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 95.6 mph, Change 88.5, Slider 87.6, and Curve 80.4 mph.

2022 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo: Fastball 56.2% - 95.8 mph; Slider 23% - 89 mph; Curve 16.6% - 81.4 mph; Change 5.2% - 87 mph.

2024 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo: Fastball 46.8% - 96 mph; Change 17.6% - 85.7 mph; Slider 10% - 89 mph; Curve 25.7% - 81.3 mph.

2025 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo: Fastball 39.8% - 95.3 mph; Change 25% - 85.2 mph; Slider 13.3% - 88.7%; Curve 22% - 81 mph.

Blake began to repeat his delivery more consistently, when he moved to the third base side of the rubber in 2014. And he has developed a more advanced feel for pitching.

"When I pitch, I kind of feel bad for the hitters in a way because I kind of know the stuff I have,” he said. “I’m really happy with this year in terms of learning. The numbers are cool but it’s just the fact of how much I learned and how much better I got that really made me happy."

Blake developed a better understanding of how to set up hitters in 2015. And he also improved his focus—which is very important. He has the ability to bust righthanded hitters inside with his fastball and put them away with an impressive changeup that faded away from them.

Pitching coach Kyle Snyder and longtime Rays roving pitching coordinator Dick Bosman had broached the subject with Snell, both before the season and in 2013.

“The battles we had with this guy on his mechanics, well, he was a stubborn kid,” Bosman says. “We knew the better way to teach it was to see him pitch and fail and teach him from that. There was plenty of stuff Blake Snell didn’t want to do early on, but let him get his ass handed to him a few times, and pretty soon you’ve got a damn receptive audience. He pitches inside well to righthanded hitters. It takes courage to pitch inside, and he’s got plenty of that good courage.”

Snell’s breaking ball has evolved in the last two years as well, beginning in instructional league after the 2013 season. “I learned the curveball from Dick Bosman,” he says, as he shifted the grip on the pitch, creating spin more with his middle finger rather than his index finger. “I should know my fingers. I’m a pitcher.”

He said playing catch with teammate Austin Pruitt helped him hone the grip and release of the pitch, working on getting four-seam spin on the curve, similar to his fastball.

“The power finger is the middle finger,” says Kyle Snyder, who saw the change firsthand as Triple-A Durham’s pitching coach working with Snell over his final eight starts of 2015. “The other thing we have stressed is the commitment, the conviction, and there’s a lot to be said for that. With conviction comes an element of deception. If he’s selling all four pitches, fastball/curveball/slider/changeup, from the same slot, it gives you some room for error.” (John Manuel - Baseball America - 9/25/2015)

2015 Season: Pitching across three levels, Snell topped the Minor Leagues with his 1.41 combined ERA and .182 batting average against. His 163 strikeouts were tied for fourth most, second among left-handers. Snell didn't load up at the lower levels, either. After his scoreless 21 innings in the Florida State League, he moved up to Double-A, supposedly the toughest leap to make. He posted a 1.57 ERA and .191 BAA in 12 starts there before moving to Triple-A.

The International League posed no greater a problem as Snell finished with a 1.83 ERA and .187 BAA in nine starts at that level. Over the course of his 25 games (23 starts) in 2015, Snell allowed more than two earned runs exactly one time.

"Blake had a remarkable season, and he very much deserves all of the honors he's receiving," Rays Vice President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom said. "He's made so much progress since entering our system, and especially in 2015. It's a credit to all of our staff who have worked with him, and most of all a credit to Blake. His aptitude and desire have gotten him to this point, and we're very excited about his future."

In Triple-A, Snell credits his teammates on the Durham Bulls pitching staff and Kyle Snyder for helping him learn to really study hitters and their tendencies for the first time consistently. That's a skill that should help him when he makes the final step to Tampa Bay.  (Mayo - mlb.com - 9/11/2015)

In 2015, the Rays named Snell the organization's Minor League Pitcher of the Year for the second consecutive season.

“You can see why there is so much buzz about him,” Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner said. “I thought he had a really live arm. He’s got a good breaking ball. I’m sure he’s got a really bright future. I’m not looking forward to having to continue to face him, a guy in our division with an arm like that.”

Snell’s bosses were impressed with how he did it, lauding his composure and poise as well as his attention to detail, such as holding runners close. Beyond that, big league manager Kevin Cash said, was his impressive approach.

“He showed zero fear whatsoever,” Cash said. “He was just not concerned about shying away from contact. I thought he threw every pitch with strike intent, to get a swing.

“And I don’t know if you see a ton of young pitchers who take that approach. A lot of guys who come up think, ‘Let me see if I can paint this edge right here.’ And they’re probably not capable of doing it, but they try it. I don't think Blake even thought about that. He was like: ‘Here it is. Hit it. My stuff’s really good.’” (Marc Topkin - 4/23/2016)

2018 Improvements: Blake was an All-Star this season. And there's a big the difference in his pitching between this time a year ago and this year. What is the big difference?

I'm not sure if Snell's performance should come as such a big surprise, given his strong track record coming up through the system and his strong finish to the 2017 season, but it has been fun to watch. Last season, in his final 10 starts after being recalled from Triple-A Durham on Aug. 8, he went 5-1 with a 2.84 ERA. He did not allow an earned run in four of those 10 starts.

A lot of that success was attributed to an adjustment in which he moved from the third-base side of the rubber to the middle of the rubber. Apparently, that lined him up better to throw strikes. Seems like that strong finish added confidence. September 23, 2018: Snell's 21st win broke David Price's team-record of 20 wins set in 2012.

September 2018: Snell was named AL Pitcher of the Month. He went 5-0 with a 1.26 ERA across 35 2/3 innings while holding batters to a .171 clip to help the Rays finish with a 90-72 record. Snell also tied the Indians' Carlos Carrasco for the MLB high with 53 strikeouts.

Less than a year removed from a Minor League demotion, Snell set the Rays' franchise record with 21 wins, and he notched nine of those in a row without a loss (with a no-decision in between) that also marked a franchise record. At the ripe age of 25, Snell joined Dwight Gooden (1985), Vida Blue (1971), Denny McLain (1968), Dave McNally (1968), Dean Chance (1964) and Hal Newhouser (1945) as the only pitchers that young to record at least 20 wins and an ERA below 2.00.

In 2018, Snell won the Warren Spahn Award. Named after the Hall of Famer Spahn, the all-time winningest lefthander, the award has been given annually to the best lefthanded pitcher in baseball since 1998.

In 2018, Snell took the A.L. Cy Young Award, putting up the second-lowest ERA in the majors after deGrom, at 1.89. Snell’s record, however, was much better: 21-5. Only he and Corey Kluber of the Indians won at least 20 games that season.

2018: Snell's curveball was voted one of the nastiest pitches in baseball by MLB players.

Snell's breakout Cy Young season in 2018 was a beautiful thing to behold. And his old-school, yo-yo curveball that sits around 80 mph is his go-to put away pitch. Of the 145 plate appearances against Snell that ended with the curve, 93 were strikeouts. More than half of the swings on all curves thrown by Snell were swings and misses.

"I think it's just mainly because of how hard he throws his fastball," Blue Jays catcher Luke Maile said. "It comes out of the same slot, he's got that angle and that kind of upshot heater, and that breaking ball kind of starts out as something you need to hit. Then, before you know it, he threw it 55 feet." (Anthony Castrovince-MLB.com-Jan. 7, 2019)

2020 WORLD SERIES

Oct 27, 2020: Pulling a starter early and leaning on the bullpen to protect a lead is part of the philosophy that got the Rays to the World Series. Unfortunately, a decision manager Kevin Cash has made countless times over the last two seasons ultimately ended Tampa Bay’s bid at the first championship in franchise history in a 3-1 loss to the Dodgers in Game 6 at Globe Life Field.

With the Rays leading, 1-0, in the sixth inning, Blake Snell was giving the club everything it could have asked for in an elimination game and more. The lefthander struck out nine through four innings and allowed just two hits over 5 1/3 frames, while throwing only 73 pitches.

After Snell gave up a one-out single to Austin Barnes and with the top of the Dodgers’ lineup coming up for the third time, Cash ran out of the visiting dugout. He pulled Snell in favor of Nick Anderson, who was the Rays’ best reliever in the regular season but had allowed at least one run in six consecutive outings in the postseason.

“The only motive was that the lineup the Dodgers feature is as potent as any team in the league,” Cash said. “I felt Blake had done his job and then some. Mookie Betts coming around the third time through, I value that. I totally respect and understand the questions that come with the decision. Blake gave us every opportunity to win. He was outstanding. These are not easy decisions. I felt it was best after the guy got on base, I didn't want Mookie or Seager seeing Blake a third time through.

“As much as people think that sometimes, there's no set plan. This organization's tremendous about giving the staff the trust to make in-game decisions to give us the best chance to win. I respect what unfolded today was pretty tough.”

The decision immediately backfired as Betts hit a double down the left-field line, putting runners on second and third. After a wild pitch scored Barnes, with Betts moving to third, Seager drove in Betts for the go-ahead run on a fielder’s-choice grounder. Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi fielded the ball cleanly and fired home, but Betts easily beat the throw to put the Dodgers on top, 2-1.

“Cash is a hell of a manager, you can’t take that away from him,” Snell said. “If Nick gets out of the jam like he usually does and our bullpen holds it down like they usually do, nobody is talking about it. At the end of the day, I see both sides.

“But with the way I felt that game and what he was able to see during that game, I don’t wanna be taken out of that game. For the most part, me and Cash, I’m going to side with him, because I know how good of a manager he is and it’s just tough because I felt so good.” (J Toroibio - MLB.com - Oct 28, 2020)

September 7, 2021: For 13 consecutive innings, Blake was unhittable.  After throwing seven hitless innings in a start against the D-backs on Aug. 31, Snell threw another six perfect innings against the Angels before giving up two walks and a single in the seventh inning.  The lefty's 13 hitless frames set a Padres record for most consecutive hitless innings by a pitcher in franchise history.

2021 Season: During one stretch in 2021, Snell was flat-out dominant. The southpaw was unhittable in August of last season, going 3-1 with a 1.72 ERA and a 0.845 WHIP in six starts and 36 innings pitched. He threw well in September as well but went down with a strain late in the year to his mid-section.

At age 29, Snell is in the prime of his career and capable of getting better than we have seen so far in his career. At this point, the former AL Cy Young may be considered the ace as his repertoire is dominant when he is on. That is the big question, though. Can he achieve consistency?  (James Clark - Nov. 29, 2021)

*Fielding Independent Pitching uses the three true outcomes to create an expected ERA for a pitcher. 

That’s right. The underlying numbers suggest that, in many ways, 2022 Blake Snell was a better pitcher than 2018 Blake Snell. The 2018 Cy Young winning, ERA title-winning, All-Star Blake Snell.

Now, 2022 Snell did have an exit velocity that was two miles per hour higher on average, a hard hit rate that was 4.5% higher, and allowed more line drives and fewer ground balls. However, the biggest reason for the disparity between the seasons (1.89 ERA in 2018 vs. 3.38 in 2022) is the fact that baseball is remarkably random. There are natural fluctuations between fortunes, and Snell has both benefited and suffered from them. 

These numbers suggest that Snell produced a season in 2022 that rivaled his outstanding Cy Young year. 

Sept. 14, 2023: Since the mound was moved to its current distance in 1893, Blake Snell is the first pitcher with 160 Ks and under 20 runs allowed in a 20-game span in a single season. Across multiple seasons, the only other player to do it was 1999-2000 Pedro Martínez. 

2023: Snell won the NL Cy Young Award.

The 6-foot-4 southpaw posted an NL-best 2.25 ERA, and struck out 234 batters in 180 innings, underpinning his 1.189 WHIP. The winner of the 2018 AL Cy Young Award, Snell is not likely to be pursued by the Padres, because they will likely be unable afford him. Snell will be the front and center in the eyes of many an MLB front office. (Adrian Dorney - Oct. 7, 2023)

Few pitchers have hit free agency coming off as dominant a stretch as Snell put together in his walk year: From the end of May on, he compiled a 1.20 ERA over 23 starts, blanking the opposition in 11 of those outings (and only twice allowing more than two runs). 

But “walk year” was an apt way of describing Snell’s season in multiple ways. He posted those remarkable results while also leading the league in walks; the last Cy Young Award winner to do that was Early Wynn in 1959. Because he goes to so many full counts, Snell rarely works beyond the sixth inning and averaged fewer than 5 2/3 innings per start this season. (Britton/Gellman - Nov 6, 2023- The Athletic)

Snell allowed just three walks and struck out the last 11 Reds during his dominant performance on the mound. (Kristen Wong)

2024 Season: After entering July with a 9.51 ERA in six starts, he has put up a 1.23 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 12.8 K/9 dating back to July 9. He was pretty bad in the first half, but the 2023 NL Cy Young recipient is about to re-enter free agency with a whole load of positive momentum,” Miller wrote.

Drastic first half and second half splits are nothing new for Snell. As Miller noted, “Snell has gone 23-36 with a 4.35 ERA and 1.36 WHIP from Opening Day through the end of June, compared to 53-22 with a 2.34 ERA and 1.11 WHIP from July 1 onward.” (Kenneth Teape - Sept. 30, 2024)

Oct. 15, 2025:  Snell joined the TNT Sports pregame show for an interview and was asked about his career journey to this point. When Snell got to his year with the Giants, he heaped praise Webb’s way.

“Going to San Francisco, that’s where I learned how to pitch,” Snell said. “I was around Logan Webb, and man, he’s going seven innings — it’s like, every game he’s going seven innings.” Snell said when he asked Webb how he was able to consistently pitch deep into games, Webb offered him some advice on how to attack hitters.

“He’s like, ‘Man, I’m just in the [strike] zone. You’re just not in the zone enough,’” Snell said of Webb’s counsel. “‘You strike too many people out. You’ve got to get in the zone more. You’ll still get strikeouts, but get in the zone. And by doing that, you’re going to get six, seven, eight [innings]. You’re going to be able to go deeper in the game.’

“That year in San Fran was so big for me, just being around Logan and really learning how to pitch.” (Alex Simon - SFGate)

2025 Season: This past winter, when he opted out of his contract with the Giants and hit the market. On Day 1 of free agency, the Dodgers reached out to let Snell know he was their top priority. Snell likewise appreciated Los Angeles for its unbridled devotion to winning, regardless of the cost. A five-year, $182 million deal later, he was a Dodger.

His first real test came in the Dodgers' postseason opener against the Cincinnati Reds, when he got the ball ahead of Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani. Snell cruised through six shutout innings on 70 pitches. He came out for the top of the seventh figuring Cincinnati would change its approach, so he planned to alter his as well. That was a mistake. The Reds tagged him for a pair of runs.

Which happens to be the only ones he has allowed this October. He limited the Phillies to one hit over six shutout innings in Game 2 of the NLCS. And then came the Milwaukee gem, the "God Bless America" game, a far cry from getting hooked at 73 pitches in the 2020 game that allowed the Dodgers to win their first World Series in 32 years.

"That was five years ago. We lost, and who knows what would've happened if I kept going? No one knows," Snell said. "We have ideas. Yeah, I'm confident, but we don't know. It's a guess because it didn't happen. I'm going to keep learning, getting better and now I have opportunities here to really dominate and showcase the kind of pitcher I am.

"I've got a lot to prove to myself. I always tell people close to me before I pitch what it means, what they mean to me. It's just when I go out there, that's what I pitch for."

It's for his wife, Haeley, and their two baby boys. It's for his dad, who was a minor league pitcher, and for his brothers, and for the rest of his family and friends, and for the travel ball organization, Zilla National, that Snell spends countless hours organizing, scouring the country for the best youth players, including Taz Tulowitzki, the son of All-Star Troy Tulowitzki. (Jeff Passan - Oct 24, 2025 - ESPN)

August 2012: The Rays shut Snell down for the rest of the season with arm and shoulder fatigue.

July 20-Aug 4, 2018: Snell was on the DL with left shoulder fatigue. 

April 16-24, 2019: Snell was placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured right fourth toe. He broke it while taking a shower.

July 25-Sept 17, 2019: Blake was on the IL with loose bodies in left elbow.

July 29, 2019: Blake underwent arthroscopic surgery in St. Petersburg to remove loose bodies in his left elbow.  Dr. Koco Eaton performed the surgery. 

June 30-July 4, 2021: Blake was on the IL with an illness.

July 6-17, 2021: Blake was on the IL with gastroenteritis.

Sept. 12-Oct 5, 2021: The Padres placed Snell in the 10-day injured list due to a left adductor groin strain.

April 11-May 18, 2022: Snell was on the IL with left adductor strain.

April 23-May 22, 2024: Snell was on the IL with left adductor strain.

June 3-July 9, 2024: Blake was on the IL with left groin strain.

April 3-July 2025: Blake was on the IL with left shoulder inflammation.