Blake Snell

Did You Know?

• Snell grew up a Seattle Mariners fan.
• His nickname 'Snellzilla' originally belonged to his oldest brother, but he took it for himself at age eleven.
• He and his wife Haeley Mar had a son in June 2024 and another son in August 2025.

Professional career

The Tampa Bay Rays selected Snell in the first round of the 2011 MLB draft, and he signed for a $684,000 bonus. He began his professional career with the Gulf Coast Rays, posting a 1–2 record and a 3.08 ERA in 11 games. In 2012, pitching for the Princeton Rays, he went 5–1 with a 2.09 ERA over 11 starts. The following year, with the Bowling Green Hot Rods, he compiled a 4–9 record and a 4.27 ERA in 23 starts.

Snell started 2014 with Bowling Green before moving to the Charlotte Stone Crabs in May; on August 2, he threw a rain-shortened no-hitter against the Daytona Cubs, the first no-hitter in Stone Crabs history. Across 24 starts between the two clubs, he was 8–8 with a 3.19 ERA and was named the Rays Minor League Pitcher of the Year. In 2015, after beginning with the Stone Crabs, he was promoted to the Montgomery Biscuits and later to the Durham Bulls; over 25 games he went 15–4 with a 1.41 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP, earning USA Today Minor League Pitcher of the Year honors.

The Rays added him to their 40-man roster after the season. Snell began 2016 with Durham, making 12 starts and going 3–5 with a 3.29 ERA. He was called up to the majors and debuted on April 23, 2016, at Yankee Stadium, striking out Brian McCann for his first MLB strikeout. He earned his first win on June 27 against the Boston Red Sox.

For the 2016 season, Snell made 19 starts, finishing 6–8 with a 3.54 ERA and 98 strikeouts over 89 innings. In 2017, after posting a 4.71 ERA through eight starts, he was demoted to Durham on May 13. Recalled on June 28, he went 5–1 with a 3.31 ERA to close the season, ending with a 4.04 ERA and 119 strikeouts over 129 1/3 innings in 24 starts.