The Crane Pool Forum

There are conflicting reports about the Mets interest in Blake Snell. (Whose name rhymes with "Drake Bell". Where my Drake and Josh fans at?)

Mets Hot Stove last night was dismissive of the idea, but other sources see Snell as the guy the Mets would turn to if Yamamoto falls through.

I have a hunch that Jordan Montgomery is more likely (and the guys on the Stove feel the same way) but here's a thread anyway, in case this turns into something.

A guy who has won two CY awards.
Definitely should be in the conversation.
Later

I suppose so. But if they're gonna build through FA, it's only gonna be guys 30 and over this year and next. I know it's a dumb way of thinking, but they should resolve that no one will beat them moneywise on Yamamoto and if he just likes another place better, then so be it.

I know you don't rebuild the farm just to trade it all away, but fuck it, I'd see what Dylan Cease costs in trade. And I'm still very pro-Giolito and/or Brandon Woodruff.

'24: Senga (30-years old), Yamamoto (25), Cease (27), Quintana (34), Severino (29), Giolito (29), Megill, Peterson, Butto, etc.

'25: Senga (31-years old), Yamamoto (26), Cease (28), Woodruff (31), Severino (30), Giolito (30), Megill, Peterson, whoever

Mets rumored to be in discussions to acquire two-time Cy Young award winner, Blake Snell.

https://www.si.com/mlb/mets/news/mets-r ... oming-pat3

He won't get a big six year 100+M contract from the Mets (he said hopefully), but at some point when his price comes down, then sure, let's have a chat.

Some of his non-Cy seasons are pretty pedestrian, stats wise.

Maybe the biggest knock on him is that he doesn't go very deep into games, like even by today's standards, although some
of that falls on the managers he's had and the organizational philosophies of the teams he's been on, particularly Tampa.

I was wondering if there was any chance of stepping in when he didn’t come off the market right away. Perhaps high $$$, short years

He has only surpassed 129 IP two times, in 2018 and 2023 which were his Cy Young seasons. I'm concerned that after throwing 180 innings last year, for the first time since 2018, he will have arm fatigue.

Ken Rosenthal just posted an article, this is an exerpt about Snell


The case for Snell


For all the talk about how Blake Snell doesn’t throw enough innings, his agent, Scott Boras, points out several recent examples of teams valuing elite talent over proven durability in long-term deals for starting pitchers.

Consider three pitchers who signed in the past 15 months, and their innings totals over the four seasons before those deals. These numbers include the postseason and the shortened 2020 Covid campaign.

• Tyler Glasnow, 310 2/3. Received a five-year, $136.562 million extension with the Dodgers.

• Jacob deGrom, 434 1/3. Signed a five-year, $185 million free-agent contract with the Texas Rangers.

• Carlos Rodón, 355 2/3. Signed a six-year, $162 million free-agent deal with the Yankees.

Over the past four seasons, Snell has thrown far more innings than any of those pitchers: 530, including postseason.

Rodón, a Boras client coming off a disappointing first season in New York, is probably not the best advertisement for teams interested in Snell. Neither is deGrom, who underwent his second Tommy John surgery after making only six starts for the Rangers. But Snell, since returning from a left adductor strain in May 2022, has made 59 consecutive starts.

Let’s not compare Snell to Old Hoss Radbourn just yet: Thirty-one pitchers carried greater workloads in the past four seasons, starting with another Boras client, Gerrit Cole, at 702 2/3 innings. But in an era when few starters pitch deep into games, some team will value the innings Snell pitches and not worry about the ones he doesn’t.

Bill Madden mentioned in yesterday's column that the average starting pitcher lasted just 5 innings last season, so Snell is not really an outlier. That really brings home the need to have a deep and good bullpen. The Mets have neither.

metirish wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 11:45 amFor all the talk about how Blake Snell doesn’t throw enough innings, his agent, Scott Boras, points out several recent examples of teams valuing elite talent over proven durability in long-term deals for starting pitchers.

I would like to counter with the obvious, and point out these contracts and others as often not working out for their teams.

Edgy MD wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 1:38 pm

metirish wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 11:45 amFor all the talk about how Blake Snell doesn’t throw enough innings, his agent, Scott Boras, points out several recent examples of teams valuing elite talent over proven durability in long-term deals for starting pitchers.

I would like to counter with the obvious, and point out these contracts and others as often not working out for their teams.

I would suspect the average free agent contract 'doesn't work out for teams' simply by virtue of the $/Wins ratio being so heavily skewed by all the underpaid pre-arbitration and arbitration players who are producing very positive value. Longer contracts for older pitchers are, i would guess, among the least team-friendly though.

That said, Snell has been about as healthy as most pitchers and it is not my money. Get us some Snell!

Well, let's root and work for things more likely to work out.

The Yankees contract with Carlos Rodón certainly isn't looking like one of those things.

There is very little chance the Mets sign Blake Snell anytime soon in my opinion

I like Blake and would think that there is a "reasonable" contract he might accept with the Mets but don't see that type of an offer forthcoming

Another poster had said that Stearns may do his best work with trades as opposed to signings and the early results seem to lean towards that

The Mets took a beating on several contracts to which even at his large wealth Steve got toasted financially

Drew Gilbert Luisangel Acuna and Jett Williams don't appear to be far away and I take comfort from that