Tampa Bay Rays: Blake Snell Posts Bad Stats With Good Results

The Tampa Bay Rays rolled Blake Snell out for his second spring start. The numbers weren’t good but the results were positive.

A couple of weeks ago, Tampa Bay Rays 2018 AL Cy Young Award-winning pitcher Blake Snell took the mound in his spring debut. He threw 15 strikes on 21 pitches and all appeared to be well… for a bit.

It wasn’t long after the game that Snell reported soreness in the same elbow that cost him two months last season due to surgery to remove bone chips.  He received a cortisone shot on his throwing elbow. Initially, the team didn’t appear terribly concerned about the soreness and viewed it as a temporary setback.

Snell took the mound Monday against the Toronto Blue Jays and promptly walked four of the five batters he faced, allowing four earned runs with no strikeouts. Snell walked the bases loaded then walked in the first run of the game. He was replaced by Trevor Richards who gave up a grand slam to Danny Jansen which credited Snell with three more earned runs.

“Overall I felt really good.”

Snell was interviewed by Fox Sports Sun after the game. He noted his legs felt “super-weird,” they were too loose and “getting kind of tired.”

He also remarked that he didn’t execute his pitches like he should have.

The highlight of the interview was that he stated that he was happy with the way his arm felt after the outing.

Chalk this one up to a little rust and tired legs, the key is that his arm felt good following the four-walk outing.

Obviously, the great news here is that Snell’s arm felt great during and after the outing. He was hitting 98 mph on the radar gun and just had a tough outing.

It’s still early and he’s missed some time due to the soreness in his elbow. Hopefully, a couple more starts and he has his legs under him. Snell is a vital piece if the Rays intend to contend in 2020. While they have great starting pitching depth, Snell is a frontline starter and a difference-maker.

Hopefully, he’ll 100% by opening day.