Can Ohtani and the Dodgers break the all-time wins record in 2024?
Bob Nightingale of USA TODAY Sports shares his thoughts on Shohei Ohtani in Los Angeles and whether the Dodgers can overcome the Mariners' record set in 2001.
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Blake Snell, who captured his second Cy Young Award after two bounce-back seasons, finally agreed to a deal more than a week before Opening Day.
Snell has agreed to a two-year, $62 million deal with the San Francisco Giants, a person with direct knowledge of the agreement told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal had not yet been finalized. The deal includes subscription cancellations after the first season.
Suddenly, the Giants' season that had begun in slumber ended with a stunning flourish.
Snell joins a staff that also includes Logan Webb, runner-up to Snell on the NL Cy Young ballot for 2023. Earlier this month, the Giants added third baseman Matt Chapman in a similar short-term deal with several opt-outs.
The latest agreements with two of Scott Boras' clients cap a winter that also included a $113 million commitment for South Korean midfielder Jung Ho Lee, a three-year, $42 million deal for DH Jorge Soler, a four-year, $44 million deal for Jordan Hicks, who became closer to the starter and was traded for former AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray, will not be available until closer to midseason.
Snell, who turned 31 Dec. 4, had a dominant season for the San Diego Padres, leading the major leagues in ERA (2.25), adjusted ERA (182) and fewest hits per nine innings (5.8) and earning a National League Cy Young award. prize. That capped off a two-year stretch in which he posted a 2.72 ERA and 3.17 independent pitching over 56 starts.
The five-year, $50 million contract extension Snell signed with the Tampa Bay Rays expired after this season, and this was his first foray into a free agent. He won the 2018 AL Cy Young with Tampa Bay but struggled with consistency in the three seasons that followed, especially after the 2020 trade that sent him from the Rays to the Padres.
However, he hit his stride again in his final two seasons with the Padres, setting himself up for a profitable winter. Just one that lasted much longer than he would certainly have preferred.
“You go through pockets of doubt,” Snell said after winning the Cy Young in November.
“And then I remind myself: You are great, and I believe it.”
Contributing: Bob Nightingale
“Alcohol enthusiast. Twitter ninja. Tv lover. Falls down a lot. Hipster-friendly coffee geek.”