LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 19: Cody Bellinger #35 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts as he hits a 3-run home run during the 8th inning of Game 3 of the National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves at Dodger Stadium on October 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Baseball world erupts with reactions to Blake Snell’s Dodgers deal.
The Los Angeles Dodgers continue to flex their financial might; not resting on their laurels despite winning the 2024 World Series trophy not even a month ago, the Dodgers have reportedly come to terms to a five-year, $182 million contract with left-handed starting pitcher Blake Snell — with the rich getting richer as they brace for another deep playoff run in 2025.
Fans cannot believe how much more financially capable the Dodgers are compared to the rest of the MLB that they’re getting deals of this magnitude done this early into free agency. And with the likes of Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto already fronting the rotation, not to mention Shohei Ohtani’s eventual return to the mound, the Dodgers are once again shaping up to be the team to beat in 2025 — and fans are up in arms.
“Bring me a salary cap. This is ridiculous,” X user @MrAzSports wrote.
“this is honestly a pretty easy to way to get millions of fans disinterested and unattached from baseball. when 1 team is just levels above everyone else, it makes it no fun for anyone. i don’t blame the dodgers one bit but Manfred probably will need to step in at some point,” @23cmcpadres complained.
“Dodgers playing with Monopoly money – this is ridiculous,” @JoshReynolds24 remarked.
While the majority of the MLB fanbase is incensed by this development, Dodgers fans contended that the team was in dire need of another quality starting pitcher atop the rotation after being injury-ravaged in historic fashion last season.
“But I thought dodgers said that they need a starting pitcher so the signing of one of Fried, Burnes and Snell for dodgers is so predictable why everyone overreact sm lmao,” @bluejecorn explained.
“why are people mad at the Dodgers for signing Blake Snell doesn’t make sense,” @FrankiesTwoLoud added.
Dodgers ensure Blake Snell’s nightmare free agency experience doesn’t happen again.
Last season, the market for Blake Snell’s services was surprisingly lukewarm. Fresh off an NL Cy Young award campaign, it took Snell until March 2024 before he signed a contract with the San Francisco Giants. And for a while, it looked as though Snell’s 2024 season was cooked.
However, Snell hit his stride in the middle of the season and ended up being one of the best pitchers in the MLB for 2024. In 14 starts since returning from the injured list in July, Snell put up an elite ERA of 1.23 in 80.1 innings of work while striking out 114 batters. If Snell manages to stay healthy next season, the Dodgers will certainly have one of the most dynamic strikeout artists fronting their starting rotation.
