Robbie Snelling Making Strong Case for Promotion With Dominant Starts
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Major League Baseball may not have seen Robbie Snelling on the mound yet, but his time is coming and it may be sooner rather than later.
If Snelling continues his starts in Triple-A the way he has early on in the season, it could become impossible for the Miami Marlins to ignore the talent.
Snelling has been impressive every time he takes the mound and his numbers reflect a pitcher who isn’t just knocking on the door, he’s nearly beating it down.
Snelling’s Commanding Start in Triple-A
Through his first three starts at Triple-A Jacksonville, Snelling has posted:
- 2.77 ERA
- 22 Strikeouts
- 1.154 WHIP
- 13 Innings Pitched
He has allowed just seven hits and one home run. His strikeout production is what is literally turning heads. He has 15.2 strikeouts per nine innings.
In his outing against Norfolk on Friday evening, Snelling racked up an incredible 12 strikeouts over five scoreless innings. During his 94 pitches on the mound, he surrendered only two hits and four walks.
He was commanding from the start. He struck out the side to open the game and then added an additional strikeout for good measure to open the second. The only real question surrounding Snelling is his durability. He’s lasted at least five innings only once.
Snelling didn’t look as good in spring training, but certainly showed promise. He started two of the four games he appeared and ended with 8.1 innings pitched with a 7.56 ERA where he also gathered 13 strikeouts.
Miami Marlins Pitching Needs
The Miami Marlins have jumped out to an 8-6 record to start the 2026 campaign, and fortunately for the team, they seem well-rounded. They are posting great stats on both offense and defense.
The starting rotation currently consists of Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, Max Meyer, Chris Paddack and Janson Junk. As a whole the starters rank at No. 16 in the MLB with a 3.94 ERA over 14 games.
The weak link in the rotation would be Chris Paddack who has pitched 14.2 innings and recorded a 6.14 ERA. This really doesn’t represent him as a pitcher though as he had a rough outing against the Chicago White Sox to start the year.
During Paddack’s last start against the Detroit Tigers, he made his best showing of the year, when he threw a total of 96 pitches and 65 of those were strikes.
For now, Snelling is probably right where he needs to be, building a resume and confidence. But, make no mistake, if and when the opportunity arises, Snelling should be the first call.
