Blake Snell

Blake Ashton Snell (born December 4, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has also pitched for the Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants. The Rays picked Snell in the first round of the 2011 MLB draft, and he debuted with them in 2016. In 2018, he won the American League Cy Young Award, made the All-Star team, and led the AL in wins and ERA. Before the 2021 season, Tampa Bay traded him to San Diego, and he earned his second Cy Young Award in 2023. Snell signed with the Giants in 2024 and threw a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds on August 2. He started a five-year contract with the Dodgers in 2025 and was part of their World Series championship that year, beating the Toronto Blue Jays.

Snell was born in Seattle, Washington, and attended Shorewood High School in Shoreline, where he played baseball. He trained at a facility owned by his father, a former minor league player. As a senior, Snell went 9–0 with a 1.00 ERA and 128 strikeouts in over 63 innings.

The Rays drafted Snell in the first round of the 2011 draft, and he signed for a $684,000 bonus. He debuted professionally with the Gulf Coast Rays, going 1–2 with a 3.08 ERA in 11 games (eight starts). In 2012, he pitched for the Princeton Rays, posting a 5–1 record and a 2.09 ERA in 11 starts. The next year, with the Bowling Green Hot Rods, he was 4–9 with a 4.27 ERA in 23 starts.

Snell began 2014 with Bowling Green, then moved up 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. Over 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, he started with the Stone Crabs, then moved to the Montgomery Biscuits after allowing no runs in 21 innings to open the season, and later to the Durham Bulls.

Across 25 games (23 starts) with three teams, 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. He began 2016 with Durham, making 12 starts and going 3–5 with a 3.29 ERA.

Snell made his MLB debut on April 23, 2016, at Yankee Stadium. He allowed a run on a wild pitch in the first inning but settled down, striking out the side in the second and retiring 12 of his last 14 batters. His first major league strikeout was of Brian McCann. He earned his first win on June 27, giving up four runs in 5⅔ innings against the Boston Red Sox. For the 2016 season, he made 19 starts, finishing 6–8 with a 3.54 ERA and 98 strikeouts over 89 innings. In early 2017, Snell struggled to pitch deep into games, often reaching 100 pitches by the fourth inning. After a 4.71 ERA through eight starts, he was sent down to Durham on May 13. Recalled on June 28, he went 5–1 with a 3.31 ERA the rest of the way, ending the season with a 4.04 ERA, 119 strikeouts, and 24 starts over 129⅓ innings.

Snell opened 2018 in Tampa Bay’s rotation. On June 3, he tied an AL record by striking out the first seven batters he faced against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field, finishing with no runs allowed over six innings and 12 strikeouts. It was his first start at Safeco Field in front of about 300 friends and family, including his grandfather, whom he considers a mentor. At the All-Star break, Snell was 12–4 with a 2.09 ERA, the lowest among qualified AL pitchers, but was initially left off the roster.

After criticism, he replaced the injured Corey Kluber, earning his first All-Star selection. On July 23, he went on the 10-day disabled list with shoulder fatigue and returned on August 4. On August 21, he set an MLB record with his 13th straight home start allowing one earned run or fewer; the streak ended at 14 after he allowed two runs at home against Baltimore. He was named AL Pitcher of the Month for August, going 4–0 with a 1.08 ERA over five starts.

On September 18, Snell got his 20th win, becoming the first Ray to do so since David Price in 2012. On September 23, he won his 21st, a franchise record, after six scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts against Toronto. He was again AL Pitcher of the Month for September, going 5–0 with a 1.26 ERA and 53 strikeouts over 35 innings, becoming the youngest pitcher to win the award in consecutive months since Johan Santana in 2004. Snell finished the season leading the majors in wins (21), adjusted ERA+ (219), and batting average against (.178), and leading the AL in ERA (1.89) and pitcher WAR (7.5). His 1.89 ERA was the lowest in the AL since Pedro Martínez.