Very Bad News : Seattle Mariners Key Player Just Announced That He Will Be Leaving Immediately After Facing That…
Blake Snell, a native of the shore, was virtually begging to play for the Seattle Mariners. At Husky Stadium, he hoisted the 12th Man Flag and activated the siren. He was reportedly heard telling a fan to “come and get me” when the supporter asked him to throw for the Mariners. Millions of viewers were informed by NBC’s Mike Tirico that Blake Snell “wants to pitch for the Mariners.” In addition, he worked out and maintained his fitness for the whole offseason in Seattle, where he also took on the role of head coach for a 12U baseball club.
It might have seemed like the ideal fit to someone looking on from the outside. Blake Snell’s meteoric rise to become a Seattle Mariner was almost perfect. Nevertheless, he recently inked a $62 million, two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants. Why couldn’t they work out an agreement if Snell wanted to be a Mariner?
as the front office of the M had different plans. The Mariners did not seem to even attempt to bargain with the top pitcher, who was almost begging to join the team all offseason, because of the continued financial uncertainties caused by the Root Sports scandal.
Undoubtedly, there is a question about Snell’s potential fit for the squad. Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Byrce Miller, and Bryan Woo were a strong five starters, thus Snell wasn’t really needed. However, having a depth of starting pitchers is always advantageous. Bryan Woo might have benefited from some time spent in the bullpen given he has never thrown 100 innings in a season. In the end, signing a star player is always a good idea, even if it means younger players will get less playing time.
Snell is a star, in fact. During his time with the Rays in 2018 and the Padres last season, he was awarded two Cy-Young honors. Snell’s excellence is demonstrated by the fact that just 22 pitchers in baseball history have earned multiple Cy-Young awards. With a career ERA of 3.20, he surpasses all five of the Mariners’ starting pitchers (George Kirby leads the Mariners with a 3.37 ERA).
Snell is also incredibly dependable; he hasn’t seen any significant injuries and has started 172 games in the last seven years with just 37 absences. In K’s most recent season, he led the league in ERA, hit a career-high 234 and had a 98% Whiff Rate. He was essentially the best pitcher of last year, since Baseball Savant awarded him a perfect score of 100 for pitching run value.
One drawback with Snell is that he lacks self-control. Throughout his career, he has struggled with control, and last year he led the league in walks. Given his high walk rate of 13.3%, the Mariners—who last season proudly wore their motto of “Dominate the Zone”—may have been advised against selecting Snell. Snell, on the other hand, is an exception since he consistently walks a lot of hitters while giving up little runs. Furthermore, it’s not like the Mariners don’t deploy players that have high walk rates.
Andres Munoz (10.4%) and Matt Brash (9.4%) were two of the relief pitchers with the highest BB% last season. Ryne Stanek, who was just signed, walked batters at a 9.9% rate as well. I find it difficult to believe that Blake Snell’s lack of control was the only reason the Mariners chose not to pursue him.
Like the majority of Mariner supporters, I am aware that John Stanton made this decision. Money does matter in this situation, and Stanton once again exposed himself as a frugal owner this summer by refusing to take on any kind of financial risk with his organization. As of right now, the Mariners have a payroll of $128 million for 2024 (17th in MLB), which is around $1 million more than they had today one year prior. That amount would have increased to $159M if they had signed Snell to the same deal as the Giants, which would have kept them outside of the top 10 teams in terms of salary.
Even though the Mariners have a legitimate superstar in Julio Rodriguez, a club with strong World Series hopes, and the 11th-highest attendance in 2023, they would rather operate like a small-market team than keep raising payroll. Thus, Snell—who might have even agreed to a local discount—finds himself in San Francisco on a short-term, team-friendly contract that the Mariners had the option to extend but declined to do so. Stanton and the M’s ownership group will now be praying that the Mariners don’t end up having to deal with this in the future. It will be even more foolish to not sign Snell if a starter suffers a season-ending injury.
In the meanwhile, the Giants just have to pay him for two seasons and receive a reliable pitcher in the peak of his career. Therefore, Snell’s troubles won’t have a long-term impact on the Giants salary. The Giants might pose a serious threat to the Dodgers in the NL West this season if Snell is successful. With the signings of Matt Chapman, Jorge Soler, and Jung Hoo-Lee, San Francisco has also significantly increased their offensive output. The addition of Blake Snell will improve the Giants, who were already a strong squad.
