The Los Angeles Dodgers fortified their starting rotation by signing Blake Snell to a five-year, $182 million contract after he opted out of his deal with the San Francisco Giants.
Snell’s contract with the Dodgers included a $52 million signing bonus, $66 million in deferred salary and a limited no-trade clause.
The left-hander joins a talented staff that includes Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Roki Sasaki, among others. Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw are expected to eventually factor into the equation as well.
During an appearance on “MLB Tonight” with Greg Amsinger and Tom Verducci, Snell said it is his goal to start for the Dodgers in their domestic regular season opener, via MLB Network:
“I think everyone wants that game. I mean, I’m gunning for it, for sure. But I know everyone wants it, so we’ll see how spring goes, see how everyone feels, see how Japan plays out and kind of go from there.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has already revealed that Yamamoto and Sasaki will pitch during the Tokyo Series against the Chicago Cubs. If Snell doesn’t take the mound in Japan, he would be a natural choice to start for L.A. when they host the Detroit Tigers at Dodger Stadium.
Snell has started on Opening Day twice in his career, including during the 2019 season with the Tampa Bay Rays and 2023 as a member of the San Diego Padres.
He got off to a slow start last year due to signing late and not having a full Spring Training to build up, but posted an MLB-best 1.45 ERA after the All-Star break.
The two-time Cy Young Award winner finished 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA, 2.43 FIP and 1.05 WHIP in 20 starts while posting a 24.2% strikeout to walk ratio.
Blake Snell excited to team up with Clayton Kershaw
During the same interview with MLB Network, Snell marveled at throwing a bullpen session in front of Kershaw at Camelback Ranch.
Snell is excited to share a rotation with Kershaw, but that won’t come until later in the season due to the veteran recovering from offseason surgeries to his left knee and foot.
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