Phillies Favorite to Land Cy Young Winner in Free Agency

If the Philadelphia Phillies can't retain Aaron Nola, many predict that they'll make a hard push to sign Blake Snell.

The Philadelphia Phillies are in need of at least one starting pitcher via either free agency or trade.

The hope is that the Phillies can find a way to retain their free agent, Aaron Nola, assuming he declines his qualifying offer, which he is almost certain to do.

But if Phillies fans recall, Nola and the Phillies were way apart on money when it came to an extension before the season.

In 2023 he went 12-9 with a 4.46 ERA with 202 strikeouts and 45 walks. He’s recorded at least 200 strikeouts in each of his last five full seasons. He might be the most durable starting pitching option on the market.

So, it’s possible that Nola walks. If he does, what will the Phillies do?

USA Today was at baseball’s GM meetings last week in Scottsdale and there’s a free agent pitcher that would love nothing more than to go home, but probably can’t. Instead, the Phillies appear to have become the favorite for that pitcher, if they can’t keep Nola:

Free agent starter Blake Snell would love to sign with his hometown team, the Seattle Mariners, but they don’t have a need for starting pitching. The Philadelphia Phillies are the favorite to sign him while letting Aaron Nola walk away.

Snell and the Phillies have been connected this offseason, and it’s easy to see why the Phillies would be interested in him if they lose Nola.

The left-hander is a former Cy Young winner, claiming the award in 2018 with Tampa Bay when he went 21-5 with a 1.89 ERA, marks that led the American League.

After a couple of sub-par seasons in San Diego, he bounced back nicely in his contract year, going 14-9 with a MLB-leading 2.25 ERA. His ERA+ of 182 was best in MLB, as was his 5.8 hits allowed per nine innings. The thing to watch was his MLB-leading 99 walks, which was a career high.

Earlier this offseason, Sports Illustrated ranked the Top 50 free agents and Snell made the list. SI also predicted that Snell would end up with the Phillies.

The stars certainly seem to be aligning that way, assuming Nola doesn’t return.