Padres starter Blake Snell has pitched much better this season than his 3-6 record might indicate, recording a 3.48 ERA and only allowing more than three eared runs twice in 14 starts. On Saturday, however, Snell reached another level, and it wasn’t just because he was facing his former team.
Snell struck out every starter in the Rays’ lineup at least once, matching his accomplishment from June 11 against the Rockies. By striking out all nine opposing starters in consecutive starts, Snell became the fourth MLB pitcher in the expansion era (since 1961) to achieve that feat, according to ESPN Stats & Info. The lefty joins Randy Johnson (1992, ’99) Pedro Martinez (1999, 2000), each of whom did so twice, and Jacob deGrom (2021).
The performance must have been especially sweet for Snell, coming against a Rays team that traded him after the 2020 season.
After a disappointing first year in San Diego, Snell has settled in with the Padres, pitching to an ERA under 3.50 since the start of last season. His performance over the past five starts particularly has been great, as he’s allowed just two runs over 30 innings pitched, including six shutout innings against Tampa Bay.
San Diego parlayed Snell’s performance into a 2-0 win over MLB’s best team, evening the series up after the Rays won Friday night.
