Blake Snell Free Agency: Top 3 Potential Landing Spots

The San Diego Padres have a bit of a problem, and he answers to Blake Snell.

While the 30-year-old pitcher may have established himself as a reliable presence on the mound for San Diego in 2021 and 2022, this season hasn’t proven as successful. Through seven starts this year, Snell has posted an ERA of 4.89 with a 1.57 WHIP and 39 strikeouts, and he’s yet to have an outing where he allows less than two earned runs. 

Admittedly, these are a long way from bad stats, but they’re also far from the ace-quality numbers that fans expected. Snell was selected over Yu Darvish as the Padres’ Opening Day starter this season, and while the honor was there, the results just haven’t come.

67 of Blake Snell's 101 pitches last night were for strikes (66.3%), which is his highest strike rate of the year pic.twitter.com/SBqP14r4v7

— Talking Friars (@TalkingFriars) May 2, 2023

Snell signed a five-year, $50 million contract with the Tampa Bay Rays on March 21, 2019, which is still the largest deal given to a major league pitcher before they reached salary arbitration. He was traded to the Padres on Dec. 29, 2020, and without an extension from San Diego, he’ll become a free agent at the end of this season.

There’s no question when Snell is at his best, he’s fantastic. If he can get back in top form by the end of 2023, there’ll be no shortage of teams interested in adding him to their rotation, but if he continues to flounder, he’ll need a team willing to take a risk.

So, where could Snell pitch in 2024?

Blake Snell: 3 Potential Landing Spots

San Diego Padres

I think it’s unlikely the Padres will extend Snell after this season, and they may even try to trade him before the MLB Trade deadline. Darvish was also due to enter free agency at the end of 2023, but he re-signed before the season, making it clear that if San Diego is only looking to retain one starter, they’ve already made their choice. 

Adding to Snell’s competition for the Padres’ affection, the team has publicly said they intend to pursue two-way star Shohei Ohtani in free agency. With a lot of payroll coming off the books at the end of the season, they’ll have the money to make a big offer, and I think it’s safe to say the Padres will happily move on from Snell if it opens the door to sign Ohtani.

Of course, it’s still very early in the season, and Snell’s performance could improve drastically between now and the end of the year, but I’m not sure it’d convince the Padres to extend him either way. Still, a new deal to stay in San Diego is possible, and I’m sure Snell would be interested if the team made an offer.

Los Angeles Angels

The Angels will almost certainly lose Ohtani at the end of the season, if not sooner, so they may be interested in taking a risk to replace him in their starting rotation. If Snell gets back on form, he has the potential to be a game-changer, and the Angels will need that in 2024.

Even now, Snell’s pitching would hardly be cause for concern if he wasn’t being held to such high standards, and the Angels could use a seasoned starter. Other than Ohtani and Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles has a rotation of very young and inexperienced pitchers, and it’s proving to have very mixed results.

Snell could seamlessly step into a leadership role in the dugout, and if he gets back to his career-best numbers, he’d be a great asset.

St. Louis Cardinals

The Cardinals are having a rough season across the board, but pitching has been a particularly sore spot. Whether they make a move to acquire another arm at the trade deadline or wait for the offseason, St. Louis is likely to be willing to take a risk that has a potentially high reward, and Snell could fit that bill perfectly.

Jack Flaherty and Jordan Montgomery are both in their final years of club control, and Adam Wainwright is retiring at the end of the season, so there could be at least one position in the Cardinals’ starting rotation opening up this winter. If the Cardinals are looking for a lower-cost starter with the potential to be an ace, Snell could be what they need.