Fresh off winning the 2024 World Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers continued to stay aggressive in their pursuit of top-end talent.
The Dodgers have reportedly made an offer to Juan Soto, and even with that, adding an elite starting pitcher remained a priority. The club was said to be in contact with Blake Snell, Corbin Burnes and Max Fried while also discussing a trade for the Chicago White Sox’ Garrett Crochet.
Snell has made the most sense for the Dodgers given their past interest in him combined with the likliehood he would recieve the shortest-term contract of the big-three free agents.
Now, they have finally landed their target. According to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, Snell and the Dodgers are in agreement on a five-year, $182 million contract:
Blake Snell has a five-year deal with the Dodgers, per source. Snell just posted a photo of himself in a Dodgers uniform on Instagram.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) November 27, 2024
Snell posted a photo of himself on Instagram in a Dodgers uniform with the caption “LA 👀” to both break and confirm the news. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic also reported the deal includes some deferred money.
Snell, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, was back on the market for a second consecutive season after opting out of his deal with the San Francisco Giants.
The 31-year-old went 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA, 2.43 FIP and 1.05 WHIP across 20 starts this year while posting a 24.2% K-BB%. He suffered a left adductor strain in late April and left groin strain in June, but he has not dealt with any recent arm troubles.
Because the San Diego Padres extended a qualifying offer to the left-hander last year, he was no longer eligible to receive one this offseason, meaning the Dodgers won’t forfeit any compensation to sign him.
Over his career, Snell has pitched to a 3.19 ERA, 3.35 FIP and 1.22 WHIP in 1,096.2 innings with a 19.2% K-BB%. Walks have been an issue over his career, but he had arguably the best stuff on the free agent market and consistently posts a high strikeout rate.
Dodgers rotation options with Blake Snell
The Dodgers completed their goal of adding an ace to their rotation this offseason, and he now joins a group that includes Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin and eventually Clayton Kershaw when he signs a new contract.
Other options include Bobby Miller, Landon Knack and Justin Wrobleski.
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