Padres Rumors: Insider Expects Blake Snell to Get Contract Well Out of Friars’ Price Range
MLB free agency is right around the corner with both Championship Series already multiple games in and the World Series right around the corner.
In what should be a big offseason for many teams all bidding for players like Shohei Ohtani, Matt Chapman, and Cody Bellinger, one team might not be in the race: The Padres.
The Padres missed this year's playoffs by a few games even after going all in last offseason signing Xander Bogaerts and extending players like Manny Machado, Joe Musgrove, and Yu Darvish.
All those extensions and money amounting to missing the playoffs has left the Padres in a tough situation with their two biggest free agents this year, Josh Hader and Blake Snell.
Snell was the best starting pitcher in the MLB in 2023 but his amazing season also might have been his last in a Friars uniform.
"Snell could soon become the seventh pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in both the American League and the National League, having put together one of the most dominant four-month stretches of the 21st century. That run could earn Snell a contract in the neighborhood of $200 million — which might be at least $50 million too high for the Padres’ comfort."
In 2023, Snell tossed 180 innings with a MLB-leading 2.25 ERA. He also recorded a career-high 234 strikeouts but also walked 99 batters, also a career high.
The 30-year-old veteran was virtually unhittable this season having a 5.8 hits per 9 innings pitched which led the league so the high walk rate pretty much always amounted to nothing.
Snell will be the most coveted pitching talent in free agency this year, especially with Ohtani not being able to pitch in 2024.
Snell will most likely look to be paid as a top pitcher, if not the top pitcher in the MLB.
MLB.com has speculated potential fits for Snell if he does not come back to the Padres, including the St. Louis Cardinals or the NL West rival Los Angeles Dodgers.
